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Jfarttj  Carolina  State 
QJoibg* 


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NORTH  CAROLINA  STATE  UNIVERSITY  LIBRARIES 


S00695668   / 


148345 


This  book  may  be  kept  out  TWO  WEEKS 
ONLY,  and  is  subject  to  a  fine  of  FIVE 
CENTS  a  day  thereafter.  It  is  due  on  the 
day  indicated  below: 


-'522 


UAN1  6  1>93 


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Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2009  with  funding  from 

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'N^ 


PRICE  ~">  CBNT8;    l!V   MAIL,  28  CKNTS. 


PILE  SUGAR  %  THE  SOtflR-BUSH. 

,„   u^-gTHTS  IS  A  NEW   BOOK  BY  S==s_<|. 

PROF.  A.  J.  GOOR, 


—AUTHOR  OF  THE— 


"  Bee  -Keeper's  Guide,"  "Injurious  Insects  of  Michigan,"  Etc. 

The  name  of  the  author  is  enough  of  itself  to  recommend  any  book 
to  almost  any  people;  but  this  one  on  Maple  Sugar  is  writ- 
ten in  Prof.  Cook's  happiest  style.    It  is 

PROFUSELY  -#  ILLUSTRATED, 

And  all  the  difficult  points  in  regard  to  making  the  very  best  quality 

of  Maple  Syrup  and  Maple  Sugar  are  very  fully  explained.    All 

recent  inventions  in  apparatus,  and  methods  of  making  this 

delicious  product  of   the   farm,  are  fully  described. 

PRICE  35  CENTS;    BY  MAIL,  38    CENTS. 

PUBLISHED  BY  A.  I.  ROOT,  MEDINA,   OHIO. 


^THE  WINTER  CARE  OF^ 

"WORSES  4  CATTLE> 

THE  MOST  HUMANE  AND 
PROFITABLE    #<   TREATMENT. 

BY    T.  B.  TERRY. 

Although  the  book  is  mainly  in  regard  to  the  winter  care  of  horses  and 

cattle,  it  touches  on  almost  every  thing  connected 

with  successful  farming— 

SHELTER,  COMFORT,    FEEDING,   EXERCISE,  KIN IDIN 1ESS, 

DIFFERENT   SORTS   OF  FEED,  A    FILL   TREATISE   ON 

THE  MOST  ECONOMICAL  WAY  OF  SAVING  MANURE. 

A  full  description  of  Terry's  model  barn  is  also  given. 

PRICE  40  CENTS;    BY  MAIL,  43  CENTS. 

PUBLISHED  BY  A.  I.  ROOT,  MEDINA,   OHIO. 


MERRYBANKS  AND   HIS  NEIGHBOR. 


SOME   PICTURES  FROM    REAL  LIFE  OF  A  DEE-KEEPER. 

TELLING  MR.  MERRYBANES'  FAILURES  AS  AYELL 
AS  HIS  ULTIMATE  SUCCESS  AFTER  HAT- 
ING PROFITED  BY  PAST  EX- 
PERIENCE. 

ILLUSTRATING  THE  OBSERVATION  OF  JOSH   BILLINGS. 

"Egsperiens  teaches  a  good  skule,  but  the  tuishun  is  ratfier  hi.''7 


ILLUSTRATED  BY  MANY  ENGBAVINGS. 


MEDINA,  OHIO: 
A.  I.  ROOT. 
1886.    „ 


DEDICATORY. 

This  little  book  is  respectfully  dedicated  to  the  juveniles' 
who  have  contributed  to  the  pages  of  Gleanings  in  Bee 
Culture  during  the  past  few  years,  and  also  to  those  who 
may,  in  years  to  come,  come  into  our  homes  with  eyes  and 
ears  ready  for  every  thing  that  is  curious  as  well  as  for  any 
thing  that  is  funny.  While  writing  it,  Uncle  Amos  had 
them  all  specially  in  mind  ;  and  with  the  hope  that  it  will 
help  them  to  avoid  accidents  and  mishaps  in  bee  culture  as 
well  as  in  all  other  pursuits  in  life,  the  little  book  is  respect- 
fully banded  over  to  them  as  their  property. 

A.  I.  Root. 
Medina.  O.,  July,  1SS6. 


148345 


INTRODUCTION. 

The  idea  of  writing  these  papers  was  suggested  by  reading 
hundreds  and  thousands  of  letters  from  those  who  have,  at 
different  times  in  the  past  fifteen  or  twenty  years,  taken  up 
bee  culture-  The  various  mishaps  that  have  been  strung 
through  many  letters  have  been  collected  and  put  into  book 
form,  and  the  author  has  taken  the  liberty  of  giving  them  as 
the  experience  of  a  single  individual.  The  objection  may  be 
made  to  our  character.  Mr.  Merrybanks,  that  he  has  not  only 
made" wonderful  improvement  in  a  short  space  of  time,  but 
that  he  has  also  grown  younger-looking  as  time  passes  on ; 
to  which  I  reply,  that  bee  culture,  the  free  open  air,  and  the 
sunshine  of  God's  love,  have  made  my  heart  happier  and 
younger  while  these  years  have  been  passing  while  I  have 
held  such  pleasant  relations  with  many  bee-friends  scattered 
far  and  wide  ;  and  these  pages  are  given  with  a  prayerful  hope 
that  thev  may  not  only  help  the  friends  in  their  out-door  pur- 
suits, but  that  it  may  turn  their  thoughts  to  the  great  Father 
who  has  given  us  pure  air,  the  bright  clouds,  blue  sky,  and 
this  wonderful  world  so  full  of  animated  life. 

How  manifold  are  toy  works,  O  Go(3!-Psalm  104:  24. 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 


-TORY   FROM   REAL  LIFE,    ILLUSTRATED  BY  OUR    SPECIAL 
ARTIST. 


CHAPTER   I. 


MR.  MERRYBANKS,  having  read  w<  Blessed  Bees."*  has 
become  enthusiastic  on  the  subject  of  bee  culture.  As 
he  has  all  his  life  considered  that  "  the  best  is  the 
cheapest.*"  he  decides  to  have  nothing  to  do  with  "dollar 
queens."  but  he  sends  ST.cO  for  an  imported  queen  in  the 
month  of  April.  She  comes  to  hand  all  right,  and  he  contem- 
plates her  markings  and  general  appearance  with  much  satis- 
faction. 


3IR.  MERRYBANKS  CONTEMPLATES  HIS   QUEEN,  RIGHT   FROM 
SUNNY   ITALY. 

He  goes  to  his  apiary  (consisting  of  one  hive),  and  proceeds 
to  introduce  her.  While  making  the  necessary  preparation, 
he  builds  some  air  castles  filled  with  imaginary  swarms  of 
bees,  the  progeny  of  this  same  golden  queen,  and  pictures  to 


D.  H.  HILL  LIBRARY 


V,  UEKKYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

himself  the  satisfaction  he  will  take  in  seeing  them  increase 
and  prosper,  under  his  indefatigable  care.  lie  also  thinks  of 
the  pride  he  will  take  in  showing  his  queen  to  his  friends, 
Jones  and  Brown,  when  they  come  round  some  evening  to  see 
how  his  strawberries,  tomatoes,  etc.,  prosper. 

After  the  lapse  of  48  hours  he  proceeds  to  open  the  hive  and 
release  her ;  but,  to  his  dismay,  instead  of  going  down  among 
the  combs  she  takes  wing  and  soars  aloft  in  the  balmy  air. 


As    HE  -EES   HER    RISE   HIGHER  AND  HIGHER  AT  EVERY  CIR- 
CUIT  SHE   MAKES,   HE   THINKS  OF   Ills   S7.-50. 

He  also  thinks  of  several  other  things,  and  wonders  if  it 
would  not  have  been  well  to  have  used  a  cheaper  queen  until 
he  had  had  a  little  more  practice,  and.resolves  that,  if  he  ever 
gets  hold  of  her  again,  he  will  take  the  scissors  and  spoil  her 
"flying  apparatus,''  even  if  it  does  mar  her  "fair  proportions. " 


MERBYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  7 

CHAPTER  II. 

MB.   MERRY1IANKS   ENLARGES   HI>   APIARY. 

VTOU  see.  our  friend  has  prepared  himself  well  for  the  work. 
\  had  his  veil  all  tucked  nicely  about  his  neck,  his  smoker 
in  good  trim,  and  had  even  tied  his  trousers  about  his 
ankles,  that  there  might  he  no  hindrance  from  unlucky  bees- 
getting  the  impression  that  these  openings  were  entrances  to 
hives,  and  every  thing  seemed  propitious  as  he  started  out  on 
a  fine  May  morning  filled  with  the  very  commendable  idea  of 
having  all  his  bees  on  combs  of  a  uniform  size. 


m^myms^m 


HIS  TRIALS   IN  TRANSFERRING. 


Only  a  week  before,  a  neighbor  had  transferred  the  hives  you 
see  over  toward  the  fence,  and  the  whole  operation  seemed 
easy  and  simple.  Since  then,  however,  the  fruit-bloom  had 
vanished,  and  he  had  forgotten  the  injunction  of  the  A  13  C 
book,  to  beware  of  trying  to  do  such  work  when  the  bees  were 
not  gathering  honey.  As  he  scattered  his  combs  about,  omit- 
ting to  use  a  cloth  to  cover  the  exposed  sweets,  as  advised  in 
the  book,  the  robbers  began  very  quietly  loading  up:  and  be- 


X  MEKKYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

fore  he  knew  it.  stinging  was  the  order  of  the  day,  in  a  way 
he  had  never  quite  experienced  before.  His  dog,  which  had, 
until  now,  been  very  much  interested  in  the  proceeding,  sud- 
denly beat  a  retreat  with  a  series  of  quick  yelps;  next  a  chick- 
en that  chanced  to  be  near  started  off  with  alacrity,  and  finally 
his  friend  who  was  present  promised  to  see  him  again(V),  and 
bade  him  "  good-day  "  rather  unceremoniously.  He  used  his 
smoker,  but  they  clung  in  frenzied  rage  to  his  trousers,  sting- 
ing through,  diving  iuto  his  pockets  and  down  his  neck,  until 
he,  too,  was  compelled  to  .retire  from  the  field.  While  his 
friend  is  beating  the  air  furiously  at  a  little  distance,  an  inno- 
cent passer-by  in  the  read  has  started  his  horse  with  a  won- 
derful suddenness,  and  has  apparently  no  intention  at  all  of 
stopping  to  recover  the  hat  which  he  has  knocked  off,  in  trying 
to  beat  aw.iy  the  bees  which  have  gone  over  the  fence  to  at- 
tack him  so  furiously,  when  he  "  wa'n't  doing  nothin'  at  all.'* 

Moral.— If  you  don't  want  your  townspeople  to  vote  you 
and  your  bees  a  nuisance,  beware  how  you  leave  honey  care- 
lessly exp<  sed,  at  a  time  when  bees  are  gathering  nothing. 

P.  S. — Our  engraver  says  he  thinks  the  man  with  the  bee  on 
his  back  must  have  been  the  minister,  but  I  think  he  is  mis- 
taken. 


MERKYBAXKS  AND  HIS   NEIGHBOR. 

CHAPTER  III. 

MR.  31.    IS  STRUCK   SUDDENLY  WITH  A  BRIGHT  THOUGHT 


LABELING  THE   QUEEN. 

MR.  MERRYBAXKS  is  getting  along  finely  since  the  clo- 
ver season ;  but  be  has  so  much  trouble  in  finding  his 
queen,  he  has  resolved  to  paste  a  label  on  her  back,  so 
he  can  find  her  at  once.    His  paste  and  label  are  right  handy, 
but.  alas  !  she  is  nowhere  to  be  found — as  usual. 


LO 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 
CHAPTER    IV. 

FROM   THE  fcUBLIME  TO  'HIE  RIDICULOUS. 


MR.   MERRYBANKS1   DREAM. 

OCR  friend  Mr.  Mern  banks,  after  having  been  very  busily 
engaged  during  the  day  with  his  bees,  goes  to  bed  at 
night  with  bright  visions.     As  he  begins  to  lose  himself 
in  the  land  of  slumbers,  visions  of  large  fine  queens,  that  he 
was  unall3  to  find  during  the  day.  float  before  his  slumbering. 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  11 

senses,  and,  as  they  stalk  majestically  across  the  combs,  while 
the  workers  pay  homage  1  y  standing  out  of  the  way  and  bow- 
ing as  they  pass,  he  wonders  that  he  ever  had  so  much  trouble 
in  finding  them.  lie  even  sees  them  as  they  flit  through  the 
air.  and,  while  he  gazes  admiringly,  wonders  that  any  one 
should  refuse  to  be  a  bee-keeper. 

The  scene  changes ;  he  is  invited  to  speak  at  a  convention  ; 
he  waxes  eloquent  with  his  theme  ;  and.  after  a  burst  of  ap- 
plause from  the  audience,  he  winds  up  by  declaring  the  day 
not  far  distant,  when  our  land  shall  so  flow  with  milk  and 
honey,  that  even  the  urchins  on  the  street  will  go  about  with 
a  huge  dish  full,  inviting  all  who  will,  to  partake  ;  and  all  the 
enterprising  apiarist  will  have  to  do  will  be  to  carry  his  nice 
shipping-cases  full  of  honey  to  market,  on  a  spring  wagon, 
drawn  by  a  dashing  pair  of  spirited  nags,  bought  with  the 
honey  sold,  while  bees  of  enlarged  dimensions  dive  into  the 
blossoms  of  the  improved  variety  of  clover  that  lines  the  road- 
side, rifling  them  of  their  cups  of  honey.    AVhile 

Hark  !  what  is  that  sound  ?  He  rubs  his  eyes,  and  finds  it 
is  broad  daylight.  Bees  there  are,  it  is  true :  and  by  the 
sound,  he  knows  at  once  they  must  be  robbing.  They  are 
even  making  their  way  through  the  shutters  of  his  bedroom 
window.  The  urchin  of  his  dream  had,  in  truth,  slipped  into 
the  hoi  ey-house  the  day  before,  helped  himself  to  the  honey, 
dribbled  it  along  the  floor,  then  scattered  it  about  as  he  divid- 
ed it  among  his  mates,  and.  worst  of  all,  left  the  door  ajar. 
Alas  !  alas  !  thought  he.  as  he  nervously  pulled  on  his  sum- 
mer clothing,  how  true  it  is.  that  there  is  but  a  step  between 
the  sublime  and  the  ridiculous,  and  how  different  are  the 
stern  realities  of  everyday  life  from  the  fine  speeches  some- 
times made!  The  bees  about  his  bed  and  hovering  over  his 
nose  were  a  reality  after  all.  but  they  were  not  queens. 


MEKRYBANKS  AND;HIS  NEIGHBOR. 


CHAPTER  V. 

MR.    MERRYBANKS  UNDERTAKES  TO  KEEE  HIS  HONEY. 


IM TENDING  BANKRUPTCY. 

TT  has  been  said,  that  a  pipe  of  tobacco  is  the  poor  man's 
solace  and  comfort.     It  makes  him  forget  his  cares,  and 
tends  to  make.hiin  satisfied  with  his  lot  in  life,  etc. 
Our  friend  Merrybanks,  who  has  entrusted  the  sale  of  his 
honey  on  commission  to  one  of  the  above-mentioned  individu- 
als, c  includes,  after  a  survey  of  U13  premises,  that  he  prefers 


MEKRYRANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 


L3 


a  man  for  an  agent  who  does  not  forget  liis  "cares,"  and 
who  is  not  satisfied  with  his  "lot  in  life;"  especially  when 
said  il  lot "  comprises  the  existing  "  circumstances"  shown  in 
the  window  above,  and  while  his  possessions  seem  so  palpably 
taking  tk  wings  to  themselves  "  and  flying  away. 


CHAPTER  VI. 


LOCATING    AN    APIARY. 

\ 70U  see,  Mr.  Merrybanks'  neighbor  thought  he  would  keep 
1      bees  too ;  and,  in  spite  of  Mr.  M."s  remonstrances,  he 
would  set  them  up  on  a  bench  leaned  against  the  hog- 
pen. 


'MR.   MERRYBANKS1  NEIGHBOR. 

The  tragic  end  of  his  neighbor's  apiary  may,  we  hope,  prove 
a  solemn  warning  to  all  the  A  B  C  class  against  locating  the 
apiary  next  to,  or  anywhere  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of,  the 
hog-pen. 


14  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

CHAPTER  VII. 

Ml!.  MERRYBANKS'  TRIALS  IN  BEE  CULTURE— HOW  HE  SAVED 
MONEY. 

"VTOU  see,  our  friend,  after  some  sad  experience  in  sending 
his  wax  a  great  way  off  by  express,  and  paying  more  mon- 
ey for  express  charges  than  the  wax  was  worth,  to  say 
nothing  of  the  express  on  the  fdn.  back  again  (he  was  obliged 
to  do  it  all  by  express,  because  he  had  small  quantities  and  was 
always  in  a  hurry  for  it),  finally  decides  to  have  a  fdn.-mill  of 
his  own.  The  money  is  scraped  up,  the  mill  purchased,  direc- 
tions carefully  read  over,  all  needful  appliances — wax,  starch, 
etc.,  procured,  and  now  all  that  he  lacks  is  a  stove  on  which 
to  melt  his  wax,  and  a  room  for  his  water,  mill,  etc.  He  final- 
ly decides  to  use  his  wife's  cooking-stove,  but  thinks  it  will 
make  less  trouble  to  do  the  work  during  her  absence.  As  he 
<loes  not  know  exactly  how  it  may  turn  out,  he  decides  to  say 
nothing  to  her  about  it. 

It  seems  his  wife  (as  wives  often  do)  returns  rather  unex- 
pectedly, and  the  scene  that  meets  her  astonished  gaze  as  she 
opens  the  door,  our  artist  has  tried  to  depict  on  the  next 
page.  Do  not  be  frightened,  my  friends ;  it  is  not  melted  wax 
that  the  little  one  has  fallen  off  the  table  into  (our  artist 
would  never  allow  that,  for  he  has  a  little  boy  and  girl  of  his 
own),  but  only  a  tub  of  cold  water.  It  is  nothing  strange  that 
children  of  wt  inquiring  minds  "  should  wish  to  see  every  thing 
done ;  and  at  our  friend's  house  it  seems  even  the  dog  and  cat 
are  taking  a  " lively"  interest  in  proceedings;  but,  if  I  am 
right,  the  dog  seems  a  little  undecided  as  to  whether  the 
splash  before  him  was  a  bona-fide  part  of  the  programme,  or  a 
slight  accidental  hitch  in  the  machinery.  As  I  was  obliged  to 
leave  just  when  the  above  took  place,  I  really  can  not  say  how 
the  husband  and  wife  adjusted  matters,  nor  how  many  pounds 


16  MEKKYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

of  fdn.  friend  M.  made  that  day;   but  I  hope  and  trust  the 
day  ended  in  tranquillity. 

Moral.— When  you  go  to  work  with  wax,  candy,  glue,  hon- 
ey, or  any  thing  of  the  sort,  be  careful.  Accustom  yourself, 
by  practice,  to  handle  any  of  these  things  without  soiling 
your  fingers,  or  getting  a  drop  on  the  floor  or  anywhere  else. 
If  you  can  not  work  without  scattering  things  all  about,  da 
not  try  to  do  any  such  work,  but  hire  somebody  to  do  it  for 
you,  and  remain  poor  and  helpless  all  your  life.  Don't  jrou  see 
how  naturally  it  comes  for  me  to  scold  ?  Tell  your  wife,  when 
any  scolding  is  needed  in  the  family,  to  just  send  for  me. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

NOP.ODY   HURT. 

A  CCORDIXG  to  the  best  information  I  have,  it  was  an- 
J^  other  neighbor  of  friend  Merrybanks,  who  believed  in 
the  good  old  way  of  a  tin-pan  serenade,  when  the  bees 
swarmed.  Of  course,  the  queen's  wings  were  not  clipped,  for 
that  was  one  of  the  new-fangled  notions,  and,  as  it  was  an 
imported  queen,  from  his  best  swarm,  all  hands  were  called 
to  assist,  His  good  wife  got  the  dish-pan,  his  son  George  got 
the  drum,  and  the  whole  family  turned  out  and  did  the  best 
they  could.  The  dog,  catching  the  inspiration,  joined  in  with 
his  sonorous  voice ;  the  chickens  also  added  their  high-keyed 
notes,  and  even  the  neighbors  rushed  to  their  doors,  and  gazed 
with  the  usual  interest  in  such  proceedings.  The  oldest  boy- 
has  got  a  hive  on  his  shoulder,  and,  with  broad  grins,  in  keep- 
ing with  the  general  jubilee,  is  marching  for  the  bees.  Sud- 
denly the  swarm  rises  higher  and  higher,  and  finally  starts- 


MEHHYBAXKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 


IT 


over  the  fence  for  the  woods.  At  this  juncture  friend  Merry- 
banks  arrives,  for  he  had  just  stepped  into  his  buggy,  to  drive 
to  the  postoffice  for  Gleanings  ;  but  hearing  the  melee,  he 
hastens  his  horse,  perhaps  a  little  excitedly,  andr  like  all  the 
rest,  hurries  to  the  scene  of  action. 


SWARMING  TIME. 


Alas  :  alas  !  His  well-trained  nag.  hearing  so  much  noise 
and  din,  with  a  sudden  snort  and  jump  capsizes  the  wagon, 
and.  as  the  bees  soar  away  to  their  leafy  home.  Mr.  M.  comes 
tumbling  into  the  dust. 


1> 


ME KKY BANKS  ATs'D  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 


CHAPTER   IX. 

Mil.    MERRYBANKS   SENDS   HIS  HONEY  TO  THE  CITY. 

OUR  friend  Merrybauks  has  succeeded,  by  getting  up  early 
and  working  hard,  in  getting  a  fair  crop  of  honey,  al- 
though the  season  has  been  the  poorest  ever  known.  By 
careful  attention,  he  got  each  section  off  the  hives  as  soon  as 
it  was  nicely  sealed  over,  and  before  it  had  got  soiled  and  dark 
by  bees  walking  over  it.  After  the  season  had  closed  he  sent 
samples  to  several  of  his  friends  in  the  city,  asking  them  to 
see  what  offer  they  could  get  him  for  it.  Below  is  his  picture 
after  reading  one  of  their  replies. 


MR,    MERRYBANKS   READS   III<    LETTER 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 


iy 


His  neighbor  who  set  his  bees  against  the  hog-pen  (see  p. 
13)  and  who  does  not  believe  in  books  and  journals,  but  brim- 
stones his  bees  every  fall,  hearing  of  the  good  success  of  friend 
M.*s  crop,  gets  his  honey  ready,  and  sends  it  to  the  city  with- 
out even  asking  what  he  will  probably  get  for  it.  He  did  not 
have  any  letter,  but  the  man  who  carried  it  for  him  has  just 
been  in  to  tell  him  of  the  result. 


"IT'S  TOO  BAD,  I  DECLARE 


20 


MEKKYBANKS  AND  HIS    NEIGHBOR. 


CHAPTER  X. 

AQUA    PL' It  A. 


"  READY    FOR   THE   NEXT   ONE.*" 

~t  fOV  see,  our  friend  Meirvbanks  made  a  very  pretty  fount- 
ain, where  his  bees  could  get  water  conveniently, .and  he 
also  planted  some  Melilotus  leucantha  (sweet  clover),  to 

furnish  honey  for  his  bees.     Well,  some  few  stalks  were  so 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  :i 

near  his  fountain,  that  he  one  day  thought  he  would  pull 
them  up,  but  they  did  not  come  very  readily.  Now.  M.  is  a 
very  resolute  man.  and  not  easily  baffled,  and— he  was  not  this 
time,  either.  You  see,  he  pulled  it  up,  and  he  will  soon  be 
ready  for  the  next  one. 


CHAPTER   XL 

MR.   MEKItYUANKs"   EON  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR'S  DAUGHTER 


HOW  THi-:   BEES  GATHER   HONEY. 

ASTER  MERRYBANKS,  after  hearing  his  father  talk 

i  W I     about  the  way  bees  gather  honey  from  the  flowers,  takes 

the  opportunity  of  imparting  the  same  startling  facts  to 


22  MERRTBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

the  daughter  of  their  next-door  neighbor.  This  neighbor,  al- 
tliongh  a  very  homely  man  himself  (as  you  may  have  observed 
in  Chap.  IX.),  has  a  very  comely  daughter.  The  hog-pen  has- 
been  fixed  up  again,  and  he  has  put  his  bee-hives  a  little  fur- 
ther away.  Mr.  Merry  banks  has  also  got  his  buggy  fixed,  and 
that  truant  swarm  that  went  off  to  the  woods  in  spite  of  the 
tin  pans,  etc.,  is  now  contentedly  reposing  under  the  foliage  of 
that  tree  you  see  in  the  distance  (there  is  a  tree  in  the  dis- 
tance, is  there  not  V).  And  this  reminds  me  that  I  have  been. 
feeling  badly,  to  think  our  artist  did  not  give  the  boy  any  larg- 
er feet ;  but  then,  you  know  boys'  feet  usually  grow  some  as. 
they  get  older.  Perhaps,  next  time  we  see  him  his  feet  may- 
be larger. 


CHAPTER  XII. 


OUTDOOR   WINTERING 


MR.  M.  has  had  his  bees  all  nicely  packed  up  in  chaff  hivesr 
and  put  away  for  some  time ;  but  not  so  with  his  neigh- 
bor. He  kept  thinking  he  would  get  at  it  before  longr 
all  through  the  fall ;  but  as  it  began  to  grow  cold,  he  finally 
struck  upon  the  bright  idea  of  having  the  boys  do  it.  They 
had  plenty  of  time,  and  so  they  would  be  sure  to  do  it  air 
right,  His  bee-journal  had  stopped;  and  so  one  morning  he 
determined  to  send  on  25  cents  and  have  it  started  again,  so  he 
might  see  who  got  into Lk  Blasted  Hopes ;"  and,  as  he  sits  down 
to  write  the  letter,  he  remembers  his  own  Dees.  I  shall  have 
to  explain,  that  the  young  people  whom  we  just  saw  getting: 
acquainted,  after  they  got  through  discussing  the  flower,  went 
over  to  friend  Merrybanks',  and  Freddie  finally  loaned  Maryr 
the  little  girl,  one  of  his  ten-cent  Sunday-school  books ;  and  as 
soon  as  it  was  brought  into  the  house,  one  after  another  of  the 


MEKRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 


23 


family  {ticked  it  up  and  read  it  through  as  if  they  were  starv- 
ing for  such  bright-looking  story-books.  Well,  John  was  just 
then  right  in  the  midst  of  the  book  (which  happened  to  be 
••  Gutta-percha  Willie  ")  and  he  was  deeply  interested  about 
that  water-wheel  Willie  made  to  wake  him  up  mornings. 

You  remember  John  as  the  boy  who  brought  the  bee-hive 
when  the  bees  were  swarming.  Well,  all  at  once  his  father 
looked  up  and  said— 

"John,  did  you  fix  those  bees  in  a  dry-goods  box  full  of 
chaff,  as  I  told  you— the  way  it  said  in  that  last  bee-journal  V  '" 

••  Why.  father.  I  didn't  have  time  that  day."" 

"  Well,  then,  why  didn't  you  do  it  the  next  day  ?  " 

•'  Why.  it  rained  the  day  after." 

•■  And  you  mean  to  say  that  nothing  has  beer,  done  about  it 
after  all  this  time,  and  the  thermometer  8  degrees  belowT  zero?'' 

••  Why.  you  said  if  they  were  out  of  honey  [  should  give 
them  some  candy :  and  mother  said  there  wasn't  any  sugar 
to  make  candy  of." 

"  And  so  you  let  them  stand  without  ever  looking  at  them?" 

John  looked  troubled ;  and  as  there  was  nothing  to  be  said- 
lie  thought  the  best  thing  to  do  was  to  say  nothing ;  and  so 
he  only  hung  his  head  and  fumbled  the  leaves  of  his  book. 


JOHN  GOING  TO    FEED  THE    BEES. 


M  MERRYBANK8  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

••  Well,  sir  I  put  down  that  book,  and  go  this  minute  and  fix 
Tip  those  bees  as  they  should  be." 

Poor  John  I  All  his  enjoyment  has  gone ;  and  as  he  buttons 
his  scant  coat  about  him.  and  prepares  to  brave  the  elements, 
lie  mentally  wi^ln-s  that  father  wouldn't  be  so  cross,  but  would 
come  along  with  him  and  show  him  how.  and  see  if  the  work 
be  well  and  properly  done  this  cold  freezing  stormy  day  in  No- 
vember, and  then  write  his  letter  for  the  bee-journal  afterward. 
Poor  father !  for,  as  he  tries  to  write  his  letter,  he  discovers 
that  he  is  unhappy  too.  Just  at  this  crisis  friend  Merrybanks 
•comes  along.  But,  as  this  story  is  getting  long.  I  think  I  shall 
have  to  wait  awhile  before  I  tell  you  how  he  brought  sunshine 
—  yes.  sunshine,  even  when  the  wind  was  blowing  the  snow 
in  at  the  open  door,  and  the  theimometer  below  zero — to  both 
father  and  sor,  on  that  cold  wintry  morning. 


CHAPTER   XIII. 

HOW    FRIEND   M.   "BROUGHT  THE  SUNSHINE. *' 

BEFORE  going  on  with  my  story  I  shall  have  to  go  back  a 
little,  to  show  just  why  it  was  that  even  the  sight  of 
friend  M.'s  good-natured  face  brought  a  better  feeling  to 
both  father  and  son.  You  doubtless  remember  about  the 
swarm  that  ran  away  last  summer.  Well,  you  remember,  too, 
•do  you  not,  how  the  horse  got  frightened  and  broke  his 
buggy,  and  lie  came  tumbling  into  the  dust  ? 

Well,  friend  M.  picks  himself  up.  not  much  worse  for  his 
sudden  stop.  Old  ;-  Dobbin,"  as  the  distance  widens  between 
the  general  commotion  ;  nd  his  nag-ship,  is  not  so  badly  scared 
as  he  thought,  and  is  easily  caught  by  a  neighbor  hurrying  to 
the  scene  of  action. 


MBBRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  25 

But  the  bees— oli,  where  are  they  V  Bailing  away,  a  mere 
speck  in  the  blue  sky. 

Mr,  Al.'s  neighbor  is  completely  discouraged,  and  as  he  turns 
away  he  says,  disconsolately,— 

"  There  !  that's  just  tV  way  with  b?es ;  there  gbes  all  honey, 
and  profit  too.  for  this  year." 

Xot  so  with  friend  \J  embanks,  however.  His  tumble  in  the 
dust  had  in  no  way  abated  his  zeal,  and  upon  the  spur  of  the 
moment  he  burst  forth  with,— 

'•They  ain't  gone,  either;  well  follow  'em  and  bring  'em 
back.  If  you  don't  want  to  go  after  them.  I'll  give  you  s2.h2+ 
for  them  up  there  on  the  wing,  and  get  them  myself." 


MR.   MERRYBANKS    AFTER   THE    BEES. 

I  confess  that  it  was  a  little  singular  that  friend  M.  should 
offer  just  the  above-named  sum,  to  the  splitting  of  a  cent: 
but  as  our  story  proceeds,  we  shall  perhaps  rind  out  why  he 
named  just  that  exact  amount.  As  for  the  bees,  no  time  was 
to  be  lost ;  and  as  the  offer  was  immediately  accepted,  he 
started  in  pursuit,  while  his  neighbor  resumed  his  occupation 
of  nailing  up  the  hog-pen.  Somehow,  that  hog-pen  seemed  to 
need  a  great  amount  of  fixing  to  make  it  so  the  pigs  wouldn't 


86  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

get  out  and  make  a  general  raid  on  the  neighborhood,  every 
now  and  then. 

Off  goes  friend  M.'s  coat  and  vest ;  and  with  his  eye  on  the 
bees,  and  his  feet  anywhere  but  on  solid  ground,  he  starts  off" 
down  the  hill  back  of  the  church. 

Now.  since  friend  M.  has  become  a  bee-keeper,  he  has  im- 
proved in  health  by  outdoor  exercise,  until  you  would  hardly 
recognize  in  him  the  same  individual  that  he  was  when  we 
first  met  him.  In  fact,  so  robust  has  he  become,  that,  when 
his  foot  hit  on  a  round  stone  which  turned  over,  he  tumbled 
fiat  and  rolled  clear  to  the  bottom  of  the  hill. 


"7IITKISAH    FOR  THE  BEE? 

As  he  picked  himself  up  at  the  bottom  of  the  hill,  and 
rubbed  the  sore  places,  looking  first  one  way  and  then  the 
other,  to  collect  his  ideas  and  get  the  points  of  the  compass, 
the  first  woids  heard  were.— 

"  Hurrah  for  the  bees  !  " 

These  words  came  from  John,  his  neighbor's  boy.  As  he 
heard  his  father  selling  the  bees  to  friend  M.,  he  set  his  hive 
down  on  top  of  the  swill-pail,  and  watched  earnestly  to  see 
what  Mr.  M.  was  going  to  do  with  them  after  they  were 


MEKKVHANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  27 

bought.  As  he  doffed  his  coat,  John  viewed  the  proceedings 
very  intently,  and  was  not  slow  in  following  after  the  decamp- 
ing swarm.  With  his  light  summer  clothing,  he  very  soon 
outran  the  owner  of  the  bees,  and  the  shout  that  friend  M. 
heard  was  occasioned  by  the  sight  of  the  whole  swarm  of  bees 
upon  a  leafy  limb  of  one  of  the  highest  trees  in  the  woods. 
John  had  caught  a  portion  of  the  bee-fever  from  our  friend  M., 


JOHN    WITH   Tilt:    BEES,    AFTEU   CLIMBING   THE   THEE. 

and  the  lit  was  on  after  his  exercise  of  the  brisk  run.  On  the 
impulse  of  the  moment,  he  climbed  a  small  tree  that  stood 
near  where  the  bees  were  swinging  from  the  end  of  a  limb,  and, 
with  a  ten-cent  jack-knife  that  friend  M.  had  made  him  a 
present  of,  he  cut  the  limb,  slipped  carefully  down  the  tree 


88  MEBRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

with  his  prize,  and,  by  the  time  Merrybanks  had  found  out 
where  the  boys  and  bees  were,  he  was  standing  on  the  ground, 
the  center  of  an  admiring  audience  (of  two),  while  he  herd  up 
his  prize.  Our  artist  has  tried  to  depict  the  expression  of 
pride  and  joy  that  shone  in  John's  eyes  (and  mouth  (?) )  as  he 
held  the  limb  containing  that  whopping  runaway  swarm  up 
to  view. 

Now  you  know  why  John  and  Mr.  M.  were  fast  friends,  and 
why  just  the  sight  of  friend  M.'s  rosy  face  and  round  figure 
brought  relief  to  John  that  wintry  morning.  In  the  next  chap- 
ter Ave  will  try  to  tell  what  happened  to  that  bee-hive  John 
left  sitting  on  the  swill-pail,  when  he  started  after  the  bees. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

FRIEND  MERRYBANKS  INVENTS   A  HIVE. 

TTOLD  yon,  in  the  last  chapter,  that  John  set  the  hive 
down  on  the  swill-pail  when  the  bees  started  off.  Well,  the 
pail  was  over  by  the  fence,  near  the  hog-pen ;  and  now  I 
think  I  will  tell  just  how  it  came  to  be  on  that  precise  spot. 
They  had  just  finished   their  dinner,  and  John's  father  sat 
down  to  smoke  a  pipe  before  going  out  to  his  work  again. 
While  he  smoked,  he  read  in  his  bee-journal;  and  although 
he  knew  it  was  past  the  time  he  should  be  at  his  work,  he 
yielded  to  the  temptation  to  sit  a  little  longer,  in  spite  of  the 
suggestion  from  his  good  wife,  that  he  might  be  needed,  until 
he  began  to  feel  decidedly  uncomfortable,  and  just  in  a  mood 
for  finding  fault  with  somebody.     As  he  stepped  out  of  the 
door  he  passed  John,  who  was  rigging  up  a  box  for  bee-hunting. 
■John,  have  you  fed  those  pigs  this  noon  ?" 
Now,  John  was  a  very  well-meaning  boy,  and  would  jump 


MERRY  BANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  29' 

and  run  in  a  minute  when  his  father  or  mother  asked  him  to- 
do  any  thing-  for  them  ;  but  he  had  one  very  sad  fault :  he 
could  never  remember  any  thing  very  far  ahead.  He  always- 
would  forget  to  feed  those  pigs,  and  it  made  very  little  dif- 
ference whether  they  squealed  loud  enough  to  raise  the  roof 
from  their  pen  or  not.  John  never  heard  them,  and  rarely  re- 
membered to  go  and  feed  them,  unless  told  each  morning,, 
noon,  and  night.  Perhaps  one  reason  was,  that  they  were  al- 
most always  squealing,  anyhow.  aaid  he  had  got  used  to  it. 

Well,  when  his  father  asked  the  question,  he  was  so  used  to- 
saying.  ••  Oh !  I  declare,  father,  I  forgot  it,*'  that  he  said  so- 
this  time,  as  a  matter  of  course. 

His  father  was  a  little  out  of  tune,  as  you  know,  and,  under 
the  impulse  of  the  moment,  he  gave  him  a  cut  with  a  halter- 
strap  he  had  in  his  hand,  saying,— 

"  There  !  take  that,  and  learn  to  remember  what  you  are 
told.*" 

John  went  crying  after  the  pail,  but  it  could  not  be  found. 
Come  to  think  of  it.  he  did  feed  the  pigs  after  all,  promptly, 
just  before  dinner,  and  there  stood  the  pail,  over  near  the  pen, 
just  where  he  had  left  it.  So  he  came  back  to  his  father, 
rubbing  his  eyes,  with  the  humiliating  confession  that  he  was- 
not  derelict  in  duty,  but  forgot  to  mention  the  circumstance 
in  time  to  avert  the  clip  with  the  hafter  strap.  As  Jbhni 
looked  up  at  his  father,  and  his  father  looked  down  at  him, 
the  situation  was  a  little  embarrassing  for  both  parties.  John 
loved  and  respected  his  father,  in  spite  of  his  sometimes  harsh 
ways,  and  always  enjoyed  being  with  him  in  any  work  or  play. 
The  father  also  loved  his  boy  in  his  way ;  and  as  he  stood 
there,  with  the  traces  of  tears  on  his  cheeks,  he  recalled  to 
mind  how  very  dutiful  John  had  always  been.  In  fact,  there 
wasn't  a  better  boy  anywhere  around  than  his  boy  John,  as  he 
had  often  said,  if  it  were  not  for  his  awful  propensity  to  for- 
get every  commisswn.  seemingly,  that  anybody  entrusted  to- 


30 


MERKYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 


his  care.  Scolding  did  not  seem  to  help  the  matter  any,  for 
he  forgot  again,  almost  before  the  words  were  out  of  his  ears. 
I  am  a  little  inclined  to  think  the  father  was  then  remember- 
ing how  he  used  to  forget,  too,  when  a  boy,  and  how  earnest, 
kind  words  seemed  to  lift  him  up  and  make  him  strong,  more 
than  any  amount  of  scolding.  Should  he  confess  to  his  boy 
that  he  had  been  hasty  ?  and  would  he  not  think  less  of  a 
father  who  should  so  humble  himself  V  Is  it  really  well  to 
■•  own  up  "  to  your  boy  when  you  have  done  wrong  V  As  the 
father  meditated  upon  the  consequences  of  weakening  the 
boy's  conlidence  in  his  wisdom  and  fitness  to  stand  in  the  po- 
sition of  father,  he  also  thought  within  himself,  "  Oh  that  I 
could  learn  to  be  more  careful,  and  to  have  perfect  command 
over  that  temper  of  mine!"  He  did  not  think,  "  God  be 
merciful  to  nu  a  sinner."  but  it  seems  to  me  it  amounted  to 
almost  that. 


JOHN   AND  HIS   FATHER. 

"  Papa  !  John  !     The  bees  are  swarming  !  don't  you  see 


MERRY  BANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  31 

ttheni?"  It  was  little  Mary's  voice:  and,  sure  enough,  the 
bees  were  swarming.  The  particulars  of  the  event  you  have 
Ihad  already. 

Well,  after  John  got  back  from  the  woods  with  his  bees  still 
clustered  on  the  limb,  he  gave  them  to  friend  Merrybanks  to 
hold,  while  he  went  after  the  hive  left  sitting  on  the  pail.  The 
pail  was  over  near  the  fence,  and  as  the  hive  was  lifted  off  of 
it,  some  stiff  grass  and  weeds  underneath  it  raised  up  so  much 
as  to  upset  it,  and  it  rolled  over  against  the  board  fence. 
Xow.  the  bottom  board  of  the  fence  was  a  rather  broad  one  ; 
and  as  the  pail  rolled  against  it,  it  fell  with  its  mouth  against 
this  board  in  such  a  way  that  the  pail  was  all  closed,  except  a 
small  opening  at  the  lower  edge.  The  picture  will  show  you 
just  how  the  pail  lay  against  the  fence. 

After  the  weeds  had  risen  up  back 
^  of  the  pail,  it  was  obscured  from  view 
so  effectually  from  the  inside  of  the 
fence  that  no  one  would  ever  have 
thought  of  there  being  a  pail  there ; 
and,  in  truth,  neither  John  nor  his 
father  ever  did  find  the  pail.  After 
■">■: •  Nxr^' X^$Ai^8W  tne  excitement  of  bringing  the  bees 
w;»;  .<V»-':*y$f.r  ■*  •    home.  John  was  not  even  as  good  as 

the  novel  bee-hive,  usual  at  remembering,  and  so  it  never 
•occurred  to  him  that  the  pail  was  down  in  the  weeds  just 
where  it  tipped  over  when  he  lifted  the  hive  up.  After  he  and 
bis  father  had  both  hunted  for  it  in  vain,  they  gave  it  up  ;  and 
when  the  latter  went  down  to  the  grocery  in  the  evening  to 
get  some  more  "  tobacker,"  he  bought  a  new  pail. 

Xow,  one  great  reason  why  John's  father  was  a  poor  man 
Avas,  that  he  seldom  took  care  of  his  tubs,  pails,  etc.  When 
a  hoop  tumbled  off  it  was  seldom  put  back  and  fastened  ;  but 
the  utensils  and  tools  were  mostly  left  out  in  the  sun  and 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

rain  until  they  fell  in  pieces,  and  then  new  ones  were  bought 
as  a  matter  of  course.  His  plea  was,  that  it  was  more  expen- 
sive to  lix  and  fuss  with  old  things  than  to  buy  new  ones  out- 
right. Mr.  Merrybanks  did  not  agree  with  him,  and  they  had 
often  talked  over  the  subject.  Mr.  M.  even  went  so  far  as  to 
make  a  new  stave  for  a  bucket,  rather  than  to  throw  it  away  ; 
and  his  plea  was,  that  even  if  it  was  more  expensive  than  to- 
pay  15  cents  for  a  new  pail,  it  got  one  into  the  way  of  stopping 
things  from  going  to  pieces,  and  thus  saving  outlays  to  the- 
amount  of  many  dollars  in  a  year.  It  was  the  same  way  with 
the  tinware.  A  good  tin  pail  at  John's  father's  would  often 
have  the  bottom  rusted  out  in  about  two  months,  because  the 
water  was  left  standing  in  it,  or  it  was  left  with  just  a  little  in, 
without  being  wiped  out  and  turned  over.  Xow,  Mrs.  Merry- 
banks  had  a  way  of  taking  care  of  her  tinware,  that  I  think  I 
shall  have  to  tell  you  about.  She  did  not  buy  the  thickest  tin 
pails  and  dish-pans,  because  she  did  not  want  heavy  utensils 
to  handle  ;  but  before  each  article  was  put  to  use,  it  was 
warmed  slightly,  and  a  little  clean  lard  rubbed  into  all  the 
seams  with  a  soft  rag.  This  was  then  rubbed  off  with  another 
clean  portion  of  cloth,  and  the  operations  repeated  at  inter- 
vals, according  to  the  way  in  which  the  article  was  to  be  used. 
The  tin  water-pail  was  thus  dried  and  k;  greased  "  inside  about 
once  in  a  week  or  ten  days,  and  the  effect  was  such  that  the- 
pail  had  been  in  use  for  years,  and  the  bottom  was  not  rusted 
even  then.  Mr.  Merrybanks  treated  his  sap-pails  the  same- 
way  :  and,  even  though  they  were  made  from  light  tin,  they 
were  bright  and  clean  after  years  of  service. 

Now,  a  few  days  after  that  great  swarming  time  we  have 
mentioned,  Mary  and  Freddie  were  at  play  in  the  lot  adjoin- 
ing. This  lot  was  one  where  cattle  were  allowed  to  pasture, 
and  the  grass  was  eaten  down  closely.  As  they  passed  along: 
opposite  the  spot  where  that  unlucky  pa>ll.  tipped  over,  Fred- 
die exclaimed,— 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 


33 


••  Why  !  look*e  here  ?  Here  are  bees  going  out  and  in  un- 
der the  old  board  of  this  fence." 

••  They  must  be  bumble-bees.*"  suggested  Mary.  ••  and  they 
have  got  a  nest  under  there,  1*11  bet  you." 

"I'D  bet  you  they  ain't  bumble-bees.*"  said  Freddie:  "I 
guess  I  know  bumble-bees  when  I  see  them,  and  these  are 
real  honey-bees  like  my  papa's."" 

"  Well.  I  know  they  are  bumble-bees,  for  honey-bees  don't 
ever  go  down  into  holes  in  the  ground  and  grass  as  these  do. 
My  pa  has  got  honey-bees  too,  just  as  well  as  yours."* 

John,  hearing  the  dispute  from  where  he  was  trying  in  vain 
to  dig  up  the  great  weeds  that  had  nearly  swamped  the  pota- 


ARE  THEY  BUMBLE-BEES  OR  HONEY-BEES  l 


1M  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

toes,  came  to  hear  what  it  was  about.  Both  children  called 
out  at  once,— 

"Say,  John,  ain't  these  bumble-bees  ?  " 

At  Say,  John,  ain't  these  honey-bees  ?  " 

At  this,  John  clambered  over  the  fence  ;  but  the  fence  was 
poor  and  shaky,  like  the  general  surroundings;  and  as  he 
jumped  down,  the  fence  was  shaken  so  violently  that  all  hands 
soon  had  a  pretty  fair  prospect  of  knowing  the  disposition  if 
not  the  kind  of  bees  that  inhabited  that  old  pail  and  were 
pouring  out  from  under  the  fence  in  a  way  that  meant  only 
"  business."  Discussion  was  dropped  with  a  unanimity  that 
would  have  done  credit  to  a  bee-convention,  and  all  hands  cut 
for  the  house,  laughing  and  screaming.  Whom  should  they 
run  against,  as  they  turned  the  corner  of  the  house,  but  Mr. 
JMerrybanks,  as  jolly  and  rosy  as  he  was  when  we  last  saw 
him  rolling  down  the  hill  V 

Friend  M.  hustled  the  children  into  the  house,  and  the  bees, 
after  buzzing  about  the  door  awhile,  buzzed  back  to  their  pail 
hive.  Mary  had  a  bee  or  two  tangled  in  her  Hying  hair,  but 
these  friend  M.  got  out  quietly  without  even  a  sting,  and  John 
was  the  only  one  who  was  stung  at  all.  The  bees  that  got  out 
■of  Mary's  hair,  when  found  on  the  window,  proved  to  be  one- 
banded  hybrids.  Friend  M.  lighted  a  chunk  of  rotten  wood, 
and,  after  rigging  out  the  different  members  of  the  family 
with  sundry  veils,  the  whole  party  cautiously  approached  the 
pail  bee-hive.  A  little  smoke  was  blown  in  at  the  entrance, 
and  friend  M.  carefully  turned  the  pail  so  that  a  view  could 
be  had  of  the  inside.  Sure  enough,  there  was  a  good  colony. 
They  had  evidently  built  the  first  comb  parallel  with  the  bot- 
tom of  the  pail,  and  the  next  one  right  by  its  side,  and  so  on. 
The  queen  had  commenced  her  brood  in  the  center,  and  cir- 
cled around,  so  that  their  stores  were  above  and  at  the  sides. 
All  were  loud  in  their  praises  of  these  beautiful  "  wheels"  of 
honey-comb  and  honey,  except  friend  M.    He  stood  with  his 


MEKRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  35 

smoking  chunk  of  rotten  wood  in  his  hand,  and  gazed  as  if 
spellbound.    Mary  first  broke  the  silence  :— 

"  I  guess  pa  is  studying  up  a  patent  bee-hive  made  out  of 
pails ;  don't  you  think  he  is  ?  " 

At  this.  John  grabbed  hold  of  friend  M.'s  other  hand  and 
exclaimed,  "O  Mr.  M.  !   Mr.  M. !     It'll  be  half  mine,  won't 
it.  'cause  I  invented  it  when  I  lost  the  swill-pail  V" 

At  this  sally  there  was  a  loud  laugh  all  around,  and  even 
John's  mother  joined  in,  while  she  suggested  that  he  would 
certainly  make  a  great  inventor  some  day,  if  every  thing  he  lost 
or  forgot  turned  out  like  the  pail  bee-hive.  Little  did  any  of 
the  parties  dream,  that  morning,  that  this  same  little  incident^ 
or  perhaps  accident,  was  eventually  to  make  such  a  stir,  not 
only  throughout  all  Onionville,  for  that  was  the  name  of  the 
place,  but  clear  out  into  the  outside  world  as  well.  As  Mr. 
Merrybanks  has  promised  us  a  description  of  the  Wooden- 
Pail-Cracker-Barrel  bee-hive,  belonging  to  himself  and  John, 
for  next  chapter,  I  think  I  won't  tell  you  any  more  about  it 
now.  It  winters  bees  perfectly  (even  if  they  haven't  a  drop 
of  honey),  and  costs  only— see  next  chapter. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

THE   NEW   BEE-HIVE   THAT  ALWAYS   KEEPS   THE    BEES   FREE 
FROM  DYSENTERY. 

TTOU  see,  I  was  a  little  afraid  there  might  be  a  dispute, 

\       some  time,  as  to  who  was  the  real  inventor,  and  so  I 

have  taken  several  chapters  to  go  over  the  whole  story  of 

the  incidents  that  led  to  the  great  discovery. 

Well,  when  friend  Merrybanks  came  up  to  the  door,  that 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

cold,  stormy  morning,  just  as  John  was  going  out  to  see  to 
thos.1  bees  (see  Chap.  XII.).  he  carried  something  in  his  arms 
that  John  immediately  recognized  as  the  new  bee-hive.  Of 
course,  the  sight  of  this  brought  sunshine,  for  friend  M.  was 
always  a  welcome  visitor :  and  as  he  came  up,  the  door  was 
open  wide  for  him  to  bring  in  the  wonderful  structure.  John's 
mother,  with  a  smiling  face  (for  she  too  had  been  lifted 
through  her  trials  and  discouragements  more  than  once  by  our 
genial  friend)  moved  out  the  table,  so  that,  as  the  hive  rested 
on  it.  all  could  have  a  view  from  all  sides.  Well,  this  hive,  to 
all  external  appearance,  was  nothing  more  nor  less  than  an 
ordinary  cracker-barrel,  with  the  exception  that  in  one  end 
was  an  auger-hole:  but  even  this  is  so  common  in  barrel- 
heads that  probably  none  but  John  would  have  noticed  that 
a  tube  of  wrood  just  reached  out  through  it.  flush  with  the 
head  of  the  barrel.  This  tube  was  so  near  the  chime  of  the 
barrel  that  the  end  of  the  stave  under  it  would  have  made  a 
very  fair,  though  perhaps  narrow,  alighting-board.  John  took 
in  all  these  points  while  friend  M.  was  warming  his  hands  at 
the  stove  and  making  inquiries  about  Mary,  who  had  had  a 
spell  of  the  croup.  As  the  wind  whistled  without,  and  sent 
cool  breezes  through  the  cracks  of  the  house,  friend  M.  was 
asking  if  the  house  had  been  properly  banked  up,  that  the 
children  might  not  be  exposed  to  these  chilly  drafts;  and  as 
he  did  so  he  glanced  down  at  the  floor,  which  seemed  neither 
very  tight  nor  very  warm  underneath. 

Just  at  this  point  Jolm  had  concluded  his  investigations  far 
enough  to  decide,  within  his  own  mind,  what  the  contents  of 
this  mysterious  barrel  were:  and  so  elated  was  he  with  the 
idea,  that  lie  began  dancing  up  and  down,  boylike,  in  token  of 
his  approval  of  the  bee-hive.  Well,  this  same  floor  that  friend 
M.  was  considering,  was  hardly  equal  to  such  demonstrations. 
You  see,  when  John's  father  had  the  floor  laid,  the  centers  of 
the  sleepers  were  supported  on  blocks  of  wood  set  on  end.     I 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  17 

do  not  know  why  he  was  so  thoughtless  as  to  use  blocks  when 
•stone  would  have  cost  but  little  more  time  and  trouble :  but 
so  he  did.  and  these  blocks  had  lasted  just  about  live  years, 
when  the  lower  ends  were  rotted  off.  Well,  John's  jumping 
■seemed  to  give  just  the  right-timed  vibrations  to  set  the  room 
all  in  a  teeter,  and  of  course  the  barrel  began  to  roll ;  and  be- 
fore any  one  knew  it.  it  had  rolled  off  on  the  floor.  As  it  did 
so.  one  head  came  out ;  and  with  the  head,  out  tumbled  a 
queer -looking  cushion  and  a  wooden  bowl,  filled  with  some 
white  substance  that  John  rightly  interpreted  to  be  bee-candy. 
AMiile  John  is  eagerly  taking  in  all  of  the  features  of  this 
great  hive,  I  think  we  will  take  a  peep  over  his  shoulder  and 
-see  too. 


FRIEND  31.  AND  HIS   HIVE  AS   IT  ROLLED  OFF  OX  THE   FLOOR. 


Away  back  in  the  barrel  he  saw  that  identical  pail  that  we 
saw.  in  the  last  chapter,  down  by  the  fence.  You  see.  the 
bees,  being  a  late  swarm,  had  starved  out  in  October,  and  de- 
serted the  hive  ;  and  as  friend  M.  had  asked  for  it.  it  was  of 
course  given  him.  The  pail  was  put  in  just  about  the  center 
of  the  barrel,  and  all  was  then  filled  in  and  around  with 


38  MERKYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

packed  chaff.  The  chaff  was  kept  in  place  by  burlap  or  bag:- 
ging  tacked  from  the  edge  of  the  pail  to  the  edge  of  the  bar- 
rel. To  the  head  of  the  barrel  was  tacked  a  burlap  cushion, 
that  just  filled  the  cavity.  The  wooden  bowl  rilled  with  candy- 
was  only  for  wintering,  and  for  giving  destitute  colonies  all 
the  stores  they  would  need  for  winter  at  one  "dose."'  The 
entrance  was  a  wooden  tube  with  a  one-inch  hole,  and  it. 
reached  from  the  bottom  of  the  pail  to  the  opposite  end  of  the- 
barrel.  The  combs  were  made  movable  by  cutting  out  each 
carefully,  as  built  by  the  bees  in  the  pail,  and  putting  them  iro 
a  little  light  hoop  made  of  bass  wood,  steamed  and  bent,  and? 
left  on  a  form  until  dry,  that  they  might  be  perfect  circles. 
On  opposite  sides  of  the  pail  was  tacked  a  light  tin  rabbet ; 
and  an  arm  of  tin,  similar  to  those  on  the  metal-cornereiL 
frames,  was  tacked  to  the  opposite  sides  of  the  wooden  hoops. 

After  the  pieces  were  gathered  up  and  placed  on  the  table,. 
and  John  was  placed  "  under  bonds  "  not  to  jump  any  more- 
at  least  until  the  floor  had  been  fixed,  his  mother,  who  did  not 
usually  say  very  much,  w7as  the  first  to  break  the  silence. 

"Am  I  correct  in  thinking  you  expect  the  bees  to  winter 
better  in  such  a  hive,  because  they  will  be  more  nearly  in  the 
form  of  a  sphere,  something  as  they  are  in  the  old  straw  hiver 
or  a  hollow  tree  ?"' 

"  That  is  just  the  point  exactly,  my  friend ;  and  when  the- 
queen  commences  to  rear  brood  she  starts  in  circles  in  the  cen- 
ter of  the  comb;  and  as  these  circles,  enlarge,  the  bees  find  a, 
close,  warm  inclosure  all  about  them,  instead  of  cold  corners 
full  of  nooks  and  crannies  for  the  heat  of  the  hive  to  be  con- 
stantly escaping."' 

Here  Mr.  Merrybanks  began  feeling  first  in  one  pocket  andl 
then  in  the  other,  as  if  he  suddenly  remembered  something- 
Pretty  soon  he  brings  out  a  letter,  and,  as  he  unfolds  it,  re- 
marks,— 

"  The  idea  is  by  no  means  new,  for  the  Germans  have  for 


MEKKYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  39- 

years  used  a  hive  with  a  round  roof  to  it,  the  frames  of  which 
could  be  taken  out  only  by  turning  the  hive  over.*  On  the- 
isle  of  Cyprus,  the  natives  use  hives  of  a  cylindrical  shape,t 
and  here  is  the  letter  I  was  trying  to  find,  from  one  of  our 
friends  in  Scotland,  as  you  will  see,''  and  Mr.  M.  read  as  fol- 
lows from  a  letter  that  had  a  drawing  of  an  octagonal  frame 
on  it  :— 

I  find  the  queen  commences  in  the  spring-  to  lay  in  a  circle,  and  does 
not  go  near  corners  for  a  long  time.  One  apiary  here  is  nearly  all  as 
above,  and  the  owner  says  they  breed  much  better  in  spring  than  on 
square  frames.  Andkew  Pratt. 

Link's  Schoolhouse,  Kirkaldy,  Scotland. 

John's  father,  who  had  been  listening  eagerly,  here  inter- 
posed,— 

1,1  Would  not  that  wooden  bowl  full  of  candy  winter  a  swarm 
of  bees  that  had  just  empty  combs  and  no  stores  aL  all  ?  " 

Very  likely  he  was  thinking  of  that  swarm  out  of  doors,, 
probably  in  just  that  predicament ;  John's  mother  replied  — 

"  But  the  candy  would  need  flour  in  it,  unless  tl.ey  had  pol- 
len in  their  combs." 

"  I  am  not  so  sure  of  that,*'  replies  friend  M.;  'w  in  fact,  late 
developments  seem  to  imply  that,  if  we  can  keep  pollen  away 
from  the  bees,  so  as  to  hinder  brood-rearing,  until  about  the 
time  they  would  get  it  from  natural  sources,  we  are  really 
better  off ; "'  and  again  he  begins  fumbling  in  his  pockets.  It 
is  one  of  friend  M.'s  peculiarities,  that  he  is  almost  always 
looking  for  something  somewhere  in  his  pockets.  He  almost 
always  finds  it,  though,  and  so  he  did  in  this  case.  He  has 
loaned  me  the  letters,  so  I  can  easily  give  them  here,  you  see. 

POLLEN,  AND   ITS   RELATION   TO   DYSENTERY  AND   SPRING   DWINDLING. 

I  think  what  makes  bees  have  the  dysentery,  is  eating  pollen  in  cold 
weather.  1  have  been  looking  at  my  bees  to-day.  They  were  covered  up 
in  the  snow.    The  first  swarm  I  shoveled  out  was  the  one  that  made  the- 

*See  Gleanings  in  Bee  Culture  for  the  year  1876,  p.  237;  also  p.  67,  Vol.  V. 
+  See  Gleanings  in  Bee  Culture,  p.  216,  Vol.  VIII. 


4U  MEERYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

most  honey  last  season.  The  bees  had  melted  a  large  place  around  the 
entrance.  Oh  what  a  mess  !  Two  quarts  of  dead  bees  out  there,  and 
they  had  "painted"  the  front  of  the  hive.  I  don't  like  the  color,  the 
smell,  nor  the  way  they  put  it  on.  I  remember  this  colony  had  a  large 
lot  of  pollen  in  their  frames  last  fall.  I  took  a  look  at  a  swarm  to  which 
I  fed  good  clear  honey,  so  the}-  could  not  get  any  pollen.  They  are  in 
splendid  condition.  The  entrance  is  clean  and  dry  as  in  summer.  I  went 
to  another  hive  from  which  I  had  taken  frames  of  pollen,  and  replaced 
with  clear  honey.  I  found  them  in  a  good  healthy  condition.  Other 
swarms  that  I  knew  had  too  much  pollen  have  got  the  dysentery. 

Two  years  ago  last  fall  I  fed  a  swarm  with  sugar  syrup.  I  stirred  in 
some  flour  with  it.  They  had  the  dysentery  before  spring.  I  fed  an- 
other colony  the  clear  syrup,  and  it  wintered  nice  and  didn't  want  to  fly 
during  the  winter.  I  have  come  to  this  conclusion,  that  pollen  is  very 
bad  stuff  for  bees  to  eat  in  the  winter;  but  frames  of  pollen  and  honey 
to  give  the  bees  the  first  of  April  or  last  of  March  is  just  what  I  want, 

When  I  find  swarms  raising  brood  in  Feb.,  I  set  them  down  as  worth- 
less. They  t.re  sure  to  stop  and  then  dwindle.  If  I  can  keep  my  bees 
from  raising  brood  until  the  first  of  April,  and  keep  them  in  a  healthy 
condition,  thej-  are  all  right  for  a  large  crop  of  honey  when  it  comes. 
My  bees  are  picked  in  chaff.  E.  A.  Robinson. 

Exeter,  Maine. 

"  But,""  s  ivs  John,  "  where  are  you  going  to  put  the  honey- 
boxes  when  our  hives  get  full  of  bees,  and  honey  is  coming  in 
'like  split'?"  Here  his  mother  gave  him  a  gentle  tweak  on 
the  ear,  just  in  play,  you  know,  for  using  the  slang  phrase, 
"like  split,'*  and  friend  M.  replied  as  follows :— Come  to 
think,  I  don't  believe  I'll  tell  what  he  said  until  next  chapter. 


CHAPTER   XVII. 

SOMETHING   MOKE   ABOUT   HIVES   AND  HONEY. 

•6  6  mills  hive,"  sa;  s  Mr.  Merrybanks,  "  is  not  intended  to 
be  used  so  much  for  getting  surplus  honey  as  for 
furnishing  bees  by  the  pound,  and  rearing  queens  for 


MERRYBAKKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR  41 

the  market,  etc.  However,  when  a  heavy  yield  of  honey 
comes,  and  it  becomes  desirable  to  have  it  stored  in  a  shape 
proper  for  table  use.  we  will  take  full  combs  built  on  nice 
clean  foundation,  and  when  they  are  nicely  capped  over  we 
will  set  them  aside,  either  for  table  use,  or  for  the  use  of  colo- 
nies that  need  such  aid  in  the  fall.  These  circular  cakes  of 
honey  can  be  laid  on  a  plate,  and  cut  up 
as  we  cut  up  an  ordinary  pie.  giving  the 
children,  of  course,  a  smaller  slice  than 
surplus  honey  FROM   the  older  ones,  lest  they  get  sick  by 

the  pail  bee-hive,  having  too  much  sweets."  Here  friend 
M.  gave  a  glance  at  Mary,  who  sat  over  by  the  stove,  cough- 
ing from  the  effects  of  her  bad  cold.  "Should  the  colony  get 
very  strong."  resumed  friend  M.,  "and  show  no  signs  of 
swarming,  we  will  put  another  pail  right  up  against  this  one, 
placing  the  mouths  of  both  close  together.  Now,  there  will 
be  two  ways  of  getting  surplus  honey  in  this  second  pail.  One 
is  to  attach  foundation  to  the  side,  in  such  a  way  as  to  have 
the  bees  build  the  pail  fall  of  solid  honey,  the  combs  running 
from  the  bottom  to  the  top,  so  that  when  the  pail  is  carried  by 
the  handle,  in  the  usual  way.  there  will  be  little  danger  of  the 
combs  breaking  down." 

"But  what  will  prevent  the  queen  from  rearing  brood  in 
this  second  pail,  and  your  having  brood  and  pollen  in  it  in- 
stead of  a  pail  full  of  pure  honey  V  "  suggested  John's  mother. 

"  Oh."  said  Mr.  M.,  "  we  can  easily  manage  that  by  putting 
a  separator  of  perforated  tin  or  zinc  between  the  two  pails. 
This  bucket  of  honey,  you  know,  will  be  easily  carried  to  mar- 
ket :  and  even  if  a  little  should  leak  out  there  will  be  no  drip- 
ping, for  the  pail  will  hold  honey  just  as  well  as  water.  A 
round  pane  of  glass  can  be  put  over  the  pail  to  keep  out  dust 
and  insects.  By  the  way.  this  round  pane  of  glass  can  also  be 
used  to  close  the  mouth  of  the  hive,  so  as  to  make  a  very  pretty 
observatory  bee-hive,  for  timid  people.    In  this  case  we  should 


48  MEHKYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

need  to  sew  a  sort  of  cushion  around  the  edges,  so  as  to  make 
the  glass  fit  bee-tight,  and  also  keep  in  the  warm  air  of  the 
hive."* 

At  this  juncture.  John's  father  pulled  out  his  pipe  and  be- 
gan fee  ling  in  his  pockets  for  tobacco  and  matches.  "Whenever 
he  had  an  idea  in  his  head  to  which  he  wanted  to  give  utter- 
ance, lie  instinctively  began  to  seek  for  that  self-same  pipe. 
Friend  M.  saw  the  motion,  and  so  pleasantly  shook  his  head 
at  him  that  he  put  the  pipe  back  in  his  pocket.  Of  course,  his 
neighbor  never  presumed  to  dictate  in  such  matters,  but  he 
had  such  a  pleasant,  kind,  good-natured  way  of  reminding 
one  of  a  failing,  that  the  two  were  never  any  the  less  trends, 
even  though  they  were  not  alike  in  many  of  their  ways  and 
habits.  He  knew  that  his  wife  very  much  disliked  to  have 
him  smoke  indoors  also,  and  so  he  very  pleasantly  put  the  pipe 
back  in  his  pocket,  and  proceeded  to  criticise  the  new  hive 
without  it. 

Friend  M,  took  a  chair  and  sat  down,  for  he  was  well  aware 
that  the  soundest  and  most  sensible  criticisms  would  come 
from  John's  father,  for  he  was,  despite  his  many  shiftless  and 
dilatory  ways,  a  man  of  good  practical  common  sense,  and  one 
who  might  easily  have  been  a  man  of  means  and  influence  had 
it  not  been  for  some  failings  of  his.  and  his  love  of  the  com- 
panionship of  a  class  who  were  really  his  inferiors.  He  com- 
mences,— 

"  But.  neighbhor  M.,  even  for  rearing  bees  and  queens,  you 
have  got  to  take  out  all  the  frames  before  you  can  get  at  the 
last  one.  and  you  have  not  only  got  to  put  each  one  back  in  its 
exact  place  every  time,  but  you  have  got  to  put  each  comb  the 
same  side  to  the  front  as  well.    Is  this  so  ? "' 

"  Exactly  so." 

11  And  is  not  this  a  great  objection  V 1* 

wt  On  the  contrary,  it  is  just  what  I  think  we  need  to  do  to 
make  the  most  bees  and  honey." 


MERRYEANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  43 

;-  Why,  then,  do  you  not  go  back  to  the  old  straw  hive,  or 
hollow  gum,  and  be  done  with  it  fn 

M  I  would  go  back  to  the  straw  hive,  or  something  pretty 
nearly  like  it.  if  the  combs  were  movable.  Now  just  look 
a  minute.  To  say  nothing  of  the  advantage  of  these  round 
combs  to  retain  the  animal  heat,  we  will  consider  a  little  the 
way  many  of  the  movable  combs  are  used.  Hives  are  made 
to  open  easily,  nowadays,  and  with  the  modern  smokers  it  is 
easy  to  open  a  hive  safely  any  time  we  wish.  Well,  a  begin- 
ner gets  a  hive  of  bees,  and  proceeds  to  open  up  the  brood-nest 
some  cool  day  in  April.  He  gets  the  combs  all  out,  finds  the 
queen,  turns  the  combs,  many  of  them,  end  for  end,  throwing 
a  patch  of  unsealed  brood  right  opposite  a  cold  cake  of  honey, 
or  some  empty  cells  that  the  bees  had  not  yet  covered  with 
their  cluster.  Perhaps  lie  thinks  to  put  the  combs  back  in  the 
same  order  they  were  before,  and  perhaps  he  does  not.  May 
be.  as  he  has  read  that  an  empty  comb  should  be  placed  in 
the  center  to  give  the  queen  empty  cells  in  which  to  put  in  eggs, 
lie  purposely  divides  the  brood-nest.  As  the  combs  had  been 
built  by  the  bees,  or  at  least  trimmed  and  lengthened  out  so  as 
to  give  just  room  for  the  bees  to  pass  and  do  their  work  (let- 
ting an  elevation  on  one  fill  the  depression  in  the  next,  etc.), 
when  they  are  swung  around  and  replaced,  the  bees  have  all 
this  work  to  do  over  again.  Very  likely,  if  one  should  look 
carefully  after  the  hive  was  closed,  he  would  find  great  empty 
hollows  left  between  some  of  the  combs,  and  bulges  pushed 
right  into  some  comb,  in  another  place.  In  the  latter  case, 
perhaps  a  dozen  poor  little  bees  were  mashed  into  the  next 
comb*  Well,  this  is  not  the  worst  of  it.  Bees  have  a  won- 
derful tact  for  economy  of  steps  in  the  working  season.  They 
put  the  new  pollen  for  the  young  unsealed  brood  right  in  the 
cells  opposite,  that  the  nurses  may  have  the  food  right  where 

*I  have  found  bees  thus  imprisoned,  and  still  alive,  on  opening  a  hive 
four  days  after  it  had  been  hastily  closed  by  the  careless  owner.— Pub. 


44  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS   NEIGHBOR. 

it  is  needed.  Where  you  find  a  comb  of  unsealed  larvae  you 
will  often  see  the  comb  opposite  to  it  one  solid  mass  of  pollen- 
tilled  cells ;  and  if  a  couple  of  rainy  days  ensue,  this  pollen  will 
be  all  used  in  an  almost  incredibly  short  space  of  time.  Now, 
what  will  be  the  effect  of  interposing  a  comb  just  here,  or  of 
placing  this  great  wall  of  pollen  off  to  some  other  part  of  the 
hive  ?  .Madam,  what  would  you  say  V  "  Here  friend  M.  jumps- 
up  and  turns  to  John's  mother  — 

"  What  would  you  say  if  some  one  should  come  into  your 
house  some  ironing-day,  and  put  your  cook-stove  over  in  the  lot 
across  the  way.  your  basket  of  clothes  up  stairs,  and  your  iron- 
ing-table down  cellar,  and  tell  you  to  go  on  with  your  work 
that  way,  for  modern  science  had  shown  that  more  and  better 
work  could  be  done  thus  ?  Xow,  this  is  not  exaggerated.  As 
we  look  over  the  journals,  we  fall  to  wondering  why  it  is  that 
beginners  make  such  awTful  work  of  wintering,  while  the  old 
hands  winter  their  hundreds,  losing  not  to  exceed  5  per  cent, 
and  some  not  even  a  colony.  Is  it  not  rather  a  wonder  that 
they  succeed  in  getting  colonies  through  the  summer,  even  ?" 

Here  our  friend  wiped  his  face  with  a  large  red  handker- 
chief, and  began  feeling  in  his  pockets  for  something  he 
wanted.  While  he  wTas  hunting,  John  stepped  backward,  andr 
striking  his  heels  against  the  wooden  bowl  that  had  not  yet 
been  placed  on  the  table,  fell  over  into  it,  and  split  it  into- 
several  pieces,  leaving  the  candy  in  nice  shape  to  give  that 
poor  colony  out  of  doors. 

John's  mother  was  perhaps  the  most  troubled  one  of  the 
party,  at  this  his  second  accident,  and  commenced  a  most 
humble  apology;  but  friend  M.  stopped  her  by  saying  he  was 
more  than  half  glad  it  was  broken,  for  the  bees  would  have 
built  an  empty  comb  in  the  bowl,  and  that,  on  the  whole,  he 
preferred  a  division-board  with  a  cushion  around  the  edge, 
with  a  good  stout  handle  attached,  so  it  could  be  pushed  into 
the  hive  with  a  sort  of  revolving  motion,  making  so  tight  a  fit. 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  4»- 

that  no  part  of  the  warm  air  of  the  hive  could  get  out,  to  say- 
nothing  of  leaving  cracks  or  channels  where  bees  can  get 
through.  Here  he  fished  from  one  of  his  pockets  a  copy  of 
the  British  Bee- Journal,  giving  some  of  friend  Abbot's  ideas- 
about  working  with  hives  and  combs.  Here  is  what  friend 
M.  read  to  his  little  audience  :— 

WHAT     TO     DO,    AND    WHEN     AND     HOW     TO     DO     IT.  —  INCREASING     THE. 
BKOOD-NEST. 

Under  the  influence  of  stimulative  feeding  in  hives  in  which  the  bees- 
have  been  crowded  together  by  the  dividing-board,  the  breeding  will  go- 
on so  rapidly  that  every  available  cell  will  be  occupied  with  eggs  and  lar- 
vae before  there  has  been  time  for  young  bees  to  come  into  life,  and,  act- 
ing upon  impulse,  amateurs  will  be  apt  to  enlarge  the  nest  to  give  fur- 
ther liberty  to  the  queen  to  deposit  more  eggs  and  cause  more  brood  to* 
be  created.  In  this  matter  we  would  advise  extreme  caution.  Bees  that 
are  well  able  to  maintain  life-supporting  heat  for  themselves  and  the- 
brood  (for  the  brood  generates  comparatively  little  and  needs  the  pres- 
ence of  bees)  in,  say,  three  frames  of  comb,  may  find  a  difficulty  in  cold- 
weather  in  generating  sufficient  for  a  fourth  frame,  and  its  introduction 
Avouid  probably  do  mischief.  We  would,  therefore,  refrain  from  adding- 
the  fourth  until  the  population  has  begun  to  increase  and  the  chief  of 
the  brood  approaches  maturity,  and  then  we  would  place  the  added 
empty  comb  by  the  side  of  it  pro  tern.  Many  writers  advise  that  the 
comb  in  question  should  be  placed  between  those  containing  brood, 
which  advice  is  sound  when  the  weather  is  sufficiently  mild  to  preclude- 
danger,  but  in  early  days  we  would  prefer  that  the  bees  indicate  suf- 
ficiency of  strength  to  take  charge  of  it  (by  commencing  to  breed  in  it)' 
before  we  would  force  its  absolute  care  upon  them  by  giving  it  a  central; 
place.  Bee-management  is  like  playing  a  game  of  draughts  or  chess— it 
may  be  very  easy  to  make  a  dozen  moves,  but  it  is  stupidly  absurd  to* 
move  at  all  without  considering  what  is  likely  to  happen  afterward. 

"There!"  exclaimed  he,  after  he  had  finished,  "that  is 
what  I  call  good  sound  sense.  Now  I  want  to  tell  you  some- 
of  my  ideas  about  feeding.''  But,  friends,  as  our  story  is  get- 
ting long.  I  think  we  will  listen  to  the  feeding  part  next  time. 


■46  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

A  CHAPTER    THAT  TELLS    SOMETHING  ABOUT  GETTING    DIS- 
COURAGED IN  BUSINESS  AND  GIVING  UP. 

PERHAPS  some  of  the  friends  would  like  to  know  why 
the  town  in  which  Mr.  Merrybanks  and  his  neighbor 
lived  was  called  Onionville.  Well,  I  have  thought,  for 
some  time,  I  should  like  to  tell  you  the  story ;  and  as  there  is 
.a  good  moral  in  it  that  seems  to  be  quite  in  season  just  now, 
I  think  I  will  tell  it. 

Near  the  site  of  the  town  there  lay  a  tract  of  low  swampy 
lands  that  had  never  produced  any  thing  but  wild  swamp- 
glass,  and  was  considered  by  all  of  no  particular  value  for  any 
purpose.  Finally,  some  eccentric  youth  took  it  into  his  head 
that,  by  a  system  of  underdraining,  etc.,  this  land  could  be 
so  reclaimed  as  to  raise  good  crops.  This  piece  of  foolish- 
ness, so  the  neighbors  said,  he  got  from  some  papers  or  books, 
or  some  other  like  impracticable  nonsense  on  which  he  had 
"been  wasting  his  time,  when  he  would  have  been  better  em- 
ployed at  work  like  the  rest  of  them.  He  did  not  argue  the 
point  with  them  much,  but  very  quietly  went  to  work  and 
tried  the  matter  on  a  small  scale ;  and,  as  luck  would  have  it, 
liis  first  venture  was  on  onions.  The  crop  was  excellent,  and 
the  demand  good ;  but  he  still  kept  quiet,  although  he  did  a 
vast  amount  of  thinking,  and  studied  those  foolish  books  and 
papers  more  than  ever  before.  The  next  season  he  had  his 
plans  matured  and  ready  for  business.  He  rented  at  a  very 
moderate  sum  perhaps  five  acres  of  this  swamp  land,  and  with 
a  force  of  picked  men  he  went  to  work  letting  oif  the  surplus 
water  by  means  of  open  ditches.  Every  thing  seemed  to 
favor  him,  and  in  due  season  rows  of  bright  green  onions,  as 
straight  as  ttie  streets  of  a  city,  rose  up  before  the  astonished 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  47 

gaze  of  the  people:  and  the  clean  culture,  with  the  bright 
green  contrasting  against  the  background  of  the  black  soil, 
made  a  sight  that  was  worth  going  miles  to  behold :  and,  in 
fact,  people  did  go  miles  just  to  see  the  beautiful  sight.  Did 
they  all  give  up  and  admit  there  was  something  in  book- farm- 
ing after  all  ? 

Well,  some  did.  and  a  great  many  did  not.  Some  who  knew 
from  experience  what  a  crop  of  onions  might  be  expected  from 
a  growth  as  was  there  before  their  eyes,  declared  that  the 
whole  United  States  could  not  consume  so  many,  and  that  his 
crop  would  bring  them  down  so  that  onions  would  not  be 
10  cents  a  bushel.  Our  friend  still  kept  quiet :  for.  in  fact,  he 
could  not  afford  to  waste  valuable  time  in  argument.  He  just 
minded  his  own  business.  In  due  time  the  bulbs  began  to 
show  themselves  ;  and  when  the  crop  was  beginning  to  ripen, 
he  was  still  on  the  ground,  curing  them  and  preparing  them 
for  market  in  the  best  manner.  Xot  a  weed  had  been  al- 
lowed to  grow  on  the  whole  plat,  and  the  sight  was  almost 
as  grand  in  the  fall  as  it  was  in  June  and  July.  Where  in  the 
world  will  he  put  them  all  ?  In  due  time  they  found  out. 
With  wagon-loads  of  boards  about  a  foot  square,  and  like 
loads  of  cheap  lath,  the  same  hands  that  cared  for  the  growing 
plants,  in  a  twinkling  reared  pyramids  of  cheap  boxes,  or 
shipping-crates,  and  soon  the  enormous  crop  of  over  2000 
bushels  was  not  only  safely  shipped  to  a  distant  city,  but  a 
sudden  demand  for  a  nice  article  of  onions  so  turned  things  in 
his  favor  that  they  sold  for  about  S8000  00  cash,  and  our 
hero  was  owner  of  the  whole  tract  of  land,  and  had  money 
in  bank  besides.  Onions,  onions,  onions,  was  the  cry  i  very- 
where,  and  the  next  year  everybody  went  to  raising  oi  ions. 
Losing  sight  of  the  fact  that  our  friend  had  not  only  secured 
the  very  best  ground  for  the  crop,  but  had  put  his  whole  life, 
soul,  and  brains  into  it.  they  expected  to  do  likewise.  1  need 
not  tell  vcu  how  thev  failed  :  you  have,  most  of  you,  seen  it. 


43  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

They  were  too  lazy  to  pay  the  price  of  the  crop  that  he  paid 
for  his.  Now,  the  saddest  part  of  it  comes  yet.  The  next 
year  he  went  to  work  to  do  the  same  thing  over  again.  Of 
course  he  could  do  it  again,  if  he  had  been  all  through  it,  and 
had  done  it  once.  But  he  didn't.  I  do  not  know  whether  it 
was  that  so  much  success  had  spoiled  him,  or  whether  it  was 
accident  that  had  favored  him  so  much  the  first  year ;  but  I 
«lo  know  that,  as  I  drove  past  his  place  in  the  fall  of  the  next 
year,  I  saw  him  idly  sitting  on  an  empty  basket  in  the  middle 
of  his  field,  with  a  single  hand  with  him,  and  this  hand  was 
also  sitting  down  on  the  rich  black  soil,  doing  nothing.  The 
onions  had  failed  in  a  great  many  places;  and  where  they  had 
not,  they  were  small  in  size— some  of  them  not  larger  than 
a  hickory-nut.  Worst  of  all,  the  ground  was  covered  with 
weeds.  Our  friend,  a  young  man  just  in  the  prime  of  life, 
looked  like  the  fellow  in  the  cut  on  the  next  page.  All  his  en- 
terprise and  energy  were  gone.  Could  it  really  be  my  friend  of 
the  year  before  V 

I  got  out  of  my  buggy,  and  went  over  into  the  field.  Said  I. 
"  Boys,  why  do  you  not  gather  these  onions,  and  get  them  oft 
to  the  market  V  " 

II  They  are  so  small  it  won't  pay  ;  besides,  they  won't  bring 
over  25  cents  a  bushel.1' 

"Why,  my  friend,  25  cents  a  bushel  is  better  than  nothing. 
Fix  them  up  nice  and  send  them  oft." 

He  laughed  a  sort  of  sickly  smile,  crumbled  some  dirt  in  his 
fingers,  and  sat  there  in  misery.  Of  course,  he  was  in  misery. 
Anybody  is  who  sits  down  on  the  bottom  of  an  empty  basket 
and  says,  "It  won't  pay." 

I  plucked  a  little  one,  and  rubbed  the  skin  oft.  It  was  beau- 
tifully white  and  nice,  and  all  at  once  it  came  into  my  head 
that  these  were  exactly  the  thing  for  the  little  onion  pickles 
we  buy  so  often  at  the  groceries. 

"  Look  here,  my  friend,  you  can  save  yourself  yet  by  making 


MERRYBANKS  ASD  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 


49 


IT    AVON  T    PAY. 


these  small  onions  into  pickles.  I  have  paid  40  cents  for  a 
quart  bottle  of.  them  over  and  over  again,  and  if  you  will  just 
work  the  thing  up  you  can  make  as  good  pickles  as  any  one." 

"  I  haven't  any  bottles." 

"But  you  can  get  bottles  at  a  little  expense.  There  is 
plenty  of  time  for  you  to  put  up  some  samples.  Take  them  or 
send  them  around  and  get  orders."  And  as  I  saw  the  acres  of 
nice  small  onions  scattered  about,  it  seemed  to  me  as  if  I 
would  like  no  better  fun  than  to  go  into  this  pickle  business. 
But  he  didn't ;  and  I  have  since  heard  that  he  has  become  a 
bankrupt  and  gone  to  Texas.  The  success  of  that  one  season 
has  very  likely  ruined  him  for  life. 

Well,  now  you  know  how  Mr.  Merrybanks  came  to  live  in 
Onion  ville. 


59  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

Well,  Mr.  Merrybanks  wintered  his  2o  colonies  with  the  loss; 
of  only  two.  His  neighbor  wintered  20  colonies,  and  saved  on- 
ly two.  More  than  that,  he  was  out  of  work,  and  had  been  for 
some  months.  While  brooding  over  his  misfortune  of  being- 
out  of  work,  and  almost  out  of  bees  too,  he  smoked  almost  in- 
cessantly ;  and  his  tobacco-bill  was  getting  to  be  quite  a  little 
item,  especially  where  there  was  no  income.  His  good  wife 
took  in  washing  when  she  could  get  it;  helped  some  of  the 
near  neighbors  to  clean  house  during  the  pleasant  spring 
months ;  sewed  carpet-rags,  and  did  every  thing  she  could 
think  of  to  keep  up  appearances,  and  have  John  and  Mary  at 
least  half-way  presentable  when  they  went  to  Sabbath-school 
over  at  the  little  church,  and  hoped  and  prayed  for  better 
things.  Yes,  prayed  for  better  things.  She  had  never  be- 
longed to  any  church,  for  in  her  childhood  she  had  hardly 
known  what  want  was.  Years  had  made  many  changes.  She 
was  far  away  from  her  former  home  and  friends.  Xone 
seemed  to  care  for  her  or  their  family  particularly,  unless  it 
was  kind-hearted  Merrybanks.  To  whom  should  she  go  in  her 
trouble  ?  In  one  of  Mary's  little.  Sunday-school  books  she 
had  read  of  answers  to  prayer ;  and  from  that,  in  her  late- 
trouble  she  had  taken  to  reading  her  Bible. 

u"  Come  over  and  see  our  pail  bee-hive.'' 

This  was  the  salutation  that  caused  the  family  to  look 
round  suddenly  one  May  morning ;  and  as  they  did  so,  they 
saw  friend  M.  at  the  open  door,  and  John  just  behind  him, 
with  a  smile  on  his  face  almost  as  broad  as  the  one  we  saw  on 
his  face  when  he  had  climbed  down  out  of  the  tree  with  that 
swarm  of  bees.  John's  father  rose  in  a  sort  of  listless,  absent 
way,  but  Mary  and  her  mother  got  their  things  with  a  cheer- 
ful willingness  that  showed  that  they  expected  to  see  some- 
thing pleasant  at  least,  and  all  followed  John,  who  could 
hardly  restrain  his  impatience  as  they  crossed  the  road  over  to- 


MEKKYBAXKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR 


51 


their  neighbor's  a  little  beyond.  Under  the  broad  spreading 
limbs  of  a  large  apple-tree  was  a  rustic  seat  where  John's 
father  and  mother  sat  down.  At  a  little  distance  two  stout 
stakes  had  been  driven,  so  that  their  tops  were  about  two 
feet  above  the  ground.  On  the  top  of  each  was  a  common 
wooden  pail,  laid  on  its  side  in  a  hollow  cut  in  the  top  of  the 
stake.  To  keep  it  in  place  securely,  a  piece  of  hoop-iron  was 
nailed  to  each  side  of  the  stake,  so  as  to  pass  over  the  pail. 
To  keep  the  pail  from  any  possibility  of  getting  loose  after  it 
was  crowded  into  the  hoop  attached  to  the  stake,  a  couple  of 
tinned  tacks  were  pushed  into  the  wood,  back  of  the  hoop. 
The  hollows  in  the  tops  of  the  stakes  were  so  made  that  the 
bottom  of  the  pail  stood  exactly  perpendicular. 

One  of  the  pails  had  an  entrance  made  through  the  bottom 
of  it.  like  the  pail  hive  we  saw  put  inside  of  the  barrel.  The 
other" permitted  the  bees  to  pass  out  just  under  the  glass  cir- 
cle that  closed  the  hive  like  the  one  we  saw  down  by  the  fence, 
and  oh  !  but  how  the  bees  were  working  on  the  apple-bloom, 
and  carrying  in  loads  of  honey  and  pollen  ! 


AIR.    SfERRTBANKS     PAIL   BEE-HIVE   APIAliY 


52  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGEB  )R 

•  Why.  Mr.  M.,"  said  John's  mother,  "  there  are  more  bees 
going  out  and  in  from  these  pail  hives  than  from  your  large 
chaff  hives ;  why  is  this  V  Can  it  be  they  are  stronger  in  this 
small  compass  ? " 

kt  They  are  not  as  strong,  ma'am;  but,  you  see,  their  hive  is 
in  a  circular  form,  and  fewer  bees  are  needed  to  keep  up  the 
required  temperature  to  keep  the  brood  from  chilling,  and  the 
hives  are  really  tighter,  so  far  as  cracks  and  crevices  are 
concerned,  this  time  of  the  year,  than  even  the  chaff  hives." 

Just  here  John's  father  roused  up  a  little  and  interposed, 
"  Why,  neighbor  M.,  if  the  bees  should  all  die,  as  mine  have 
done,  the  pails  would  be  just  as  good  as  ever,  with  this  kind,1' 
pointing  to  the  one  where  the  bees  came  out  of  the  mouth  of  the 
pail ;  t%  and  if  combs  were  melted  up,  one  would  have  nothing 
left  on  his  hands  but  those  hoops  with  the  rings  on  them,  and 
the  pail-covers,  which  certainly  can't  cost  very  much." 

"  The  hoops  to  hold  the  combs  can  be  made  for  about  3  cents 
each ;  and  as  only  five  are  needed  for  a  hive,  the  whole  cost, 
including  the  cloth-lined  glass,  will  not  exceed  25  cents,  and 
such  a  hive  is  all  we  shall  ever  need  to  raise  queens  and  bees 
for  the  market. " 

lw  Mr.  M.,  Mr.  JVl.,"  said  John,  as  he  shook  him  by  the  arm, 
"  just  show  them  how  easy  it  is  to  open  the  hives." 

"All  right,"  said  our  friend,  and  he  sat  down  in  front  of 
one  of  the  hives,  on  a  low  seat  made  on  purpose,  and  after 
blowing  a  very  small  puff  of  smoke  into  the  entrance,  he  drew 
out  the  cover,  then  twisted  or  rolled  the  glass  a  little,  to  sever 
all  wax  fastenings,  and  then  gently  drew  it  out  and  laid  it 
down.  You  will  observe,  that  the  minute  this  door  was 
drawn  back  the  least  bit  it  was  perfectly  loose,  because  of  the 
flare  of  the  pail.  The  first  comb  presented  a  view  of  many 
cells  filled  with  various-colored  pollen,  and  new  honey.  You 
will  observe  from  the  cut,  that  friend  M.  has  dispensed  with 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 


S3 


the  arms  to  the  frames,  and  uses,  in  their  stead,  three  wire 
rings,  soldered  to  the  metal  he  ops  which  hold  the  combs. 


THE   PAIL  BEE-HIVE,   WITH  THE  COMBS   REMOVED. 

These  rings  are  placed  at  such  distances  on  the  hoops  that 
the  two  lower  ones  support  the  weight  of  the  honey,  while  the 
upper  one  guards  the  top  of  the  comb  from  striking  the  pail 
and  mashing  the  bees,  and  the  three  rings  at  the  same  time 
prevent  any  comb  from  being  pressed  so  close  to  the  one  back 
of  it  as  to  injure  the  bees.  Friend  M.  took  hold  of  these 
rings,  turned  the  combs  slightly,  and  it  lifted  out  without 
even  the  slightest  jar.  The  comb  wras  hung  by  one  of  the 
rings  on  a  bent  nail  placed  in  the  stake,  and  the  whole  five 
were  quickly  taken  out  in  the  same  manner.  After  they  had 
been  examined,  and  the  queen  duly  admired,  as  she  kept  on 
with  her  work  of  swinging  around  in  circles,  the  whole  were 
replaced,  and  the  door  wras  gently  pushed  into  its  place  so  as 
to  push  any  bees  clustered  on  the  inside  of  the  pail  before  it. 

"You  see,"  said  Mr.  M.,  ''I  have  no  mat,  enameled  sheet, 
burlap,  or  any  thing  of  the  kind  to  fuss  with,  before  putting 
the  cover  of  the  hive  on,  and  yet  not  a  bee  is  killed,  for  I  can 
see  plainly  through  the  glass  wThat  it  is  doing,  as  I  crowd  it 
back  into  place." 

"But,"  said  John's  mother,  "will  not  the  rain  beat  in 
around  the  edges  of  the  cover,  or,  in  other  words,  will  this 
pail  hive  do  to  stand  outdoors  like  this,  even  in  the  summer 
time  ?" 


5t  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

"Why,  madam, "  said  Mr.  M.,  "if  the  rain  should  beat  in, 
do  you  not  see  it  would  run  right  out  again  ?  See  !  the  bot- 
tom of  the  hive  slants  outward,  and,  so  far  as  I  have  noticed, 
no  rain  has  ever  gone  beyond  the  outer  tin  cover." 

Here  John's  father  knocked  the  ashes  out  of  his  pipe  and 
listlessly  picked  up  the  cover,  exclaiming, — 

"  Why,  this  is  nothing  but  a  common  tin  pot-cover,  painted 
green.     Why  do  you  use  tin  in  place  of  wood  ?  " 

" Because  it  will  neither  warp,  twist,  nor  shrink;  and,  on 
account  of  its  perfectly  round  shape,  will  always  close  the 
mouth  of  the  pail  against  the  weather  and  inquisitive  robber- 
bees  who  might  be  prying  around  the  cloth-lined  edges  of  the 
glass  circle." 

11  Mother!  mother ! "  and  John  shook  his  mother's  arm  to 
attract  her  attention,  "don't  you  believe  Mr.  M.  has  promised 
to  make  me  one  to  put  right  through  my  window  upstairs, 
where  that  glass  is  broken  out,  so  I  can  look  at  the  bees  all  the 
time  while  they  are  at  work!  It  is  to  be  just  like  the  one  he 
made  for  Mr.  Boot,  that  he  has  got  in  his  greenhouse.  But, 
won't  it  be  fun?" 

Weil,  I  declare,  my  friends,  I  shall  not  be  able  to  get  to  the 
point  in  the  story  in  this  chapter  where  friend  M.  gave  us  his 
ideas  about  feeding ;  and  I  hope,  in  the  next  chapter,  to  be 
able  to  tell  you  how  God  answered  John's  mother's  prayers. 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  55 


CHAPTER   XIX. 

3IE   THAT  OVJEBCOMETH  AND  KEEPETH   3IY  WORKS  UNTO  THE 

END,   TO   HIM    WILL   I   GIVE    POWER  OVER 

THE  NATIONS.— REV.  2  I  2U. 

OF  course,  there  was  no  peace  for  anybody  until  John's  pail 
bee-hive  was  properly  fixed  in  the  window  upstairs,  near 
the  bed  where  he  slept.  As  the  lights  in  the  window 
were  rather  small,  it  was  thought  best  to  remove  the  lower 
sash  entirely,  substituting  a  sash  of  John's  own  construction, 
•covered  with  thin  boards,  through  which  a  hole  was  cut,  to  let 
the  pail  go  in  about  half  way.  The  bottom  of  the  pail  pro- 
jected outward,  and  in  this  was  the  entrance.  As  John  was 
supposed  to  be  joint  inventor  in  the  pail  hive,  Mr.  Merrybanks 
rgave  him  a  good  strong  working  colony ;  aud  as  they  were 
started  just  during  locust-bloom,  they  very  soon  had  their 
five  combs  pretty  nearly  filled.  Pretty  soon  "  pollen-laden 
bees"  began  to  come  round  on  the  side  of  the  comb  next  the 
glass,  and  the  children  thought  there  never  was  any  thing,  in 
the  way  of  pets,  so  handsome.  Every  bee  that  came  in  with  a 
nice  load  of  bright  yellow  or  orange-colored  pollen,  would 
shake  himself,  and  wiggle  in  such  a  way  that  Mary  and  Fred- 
die would  have  it  he  was  doing  it  for  pure  joy.  just  the  way 
John  jumped  up  and  down  when  he  made  the  barrel  hive  roll 
off  the  table.  After  they  got  through  the  wiggling,  and  had 
sobered  down  a  little,  they  would  thrust  their  little  legs,  with 
the  "loaves"  on  them,  into  a  cell,  and  kick  them  off  very  much 
in  the  way  the  baby  sometimes  kicks  off  his  shoes  and  stock- 
ings, and  then  off  they  went  for  another  load.  After  Mr.  Bee 
had  gone,  the  children  could  plainly  see  the  two  little  loaves 
lying  in  the  cell  where  he  had  left  them,  until  some  other  bee 
would  poke  his  head  in  and  stay  for  some  time,  deeply  intent 


56  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

on  some  important  operation,  as  they  thought,  by  the  way  in 
which  the  only  visible  tip  of  his  body  wiggled,  and  after  he 
came  out  the  pollen  loaves  were  nicely  patted  down  and  made 
smooth.  Mr.  Merrybanks  told  them  that  the  bee  patted  and 
smoothed  it  down  by  rubbing  his  head  against  it :  or,  at  least, 
lie  had  read  so  in  the  British  Bee-Journal.  Mr.  M.  often 
quotes  that  journal,  you  know. 

Well,  John  was  so  taken  up  with  his  bee-hive  that  he  hardly 
slept  or  ate  ;  and  although  it  was  the  last  thing  he  looked  at 
at  night  before  he  went  to  bed.  it  was  the  first  thing  he  has- 
tened to  wmen  he  opened  his  eyes  in  the  morning.  To  tell  the 
truth,  his  mother,  on  going  into  his  room  one  night,  after  he 
had  long  been  asleep,  found  he  had  moved  his  bed  up  near  the 
window,  and  was  sleeping  with  a  smile  on  his  face,  close  up  by 
that  simple  little  pane  of  glass.  The  bees  had  just  been  build- 
ing some  new  white  comb,  to  fill  a  vacant  place  left  accident- 
ally; and  as  they  did  the  greater  part  of  the  comb-building  in 
the  night,  John  had  folded  his  pillows  so  as  to  raise  his  head 
close  up  to  them.  There  they  were,  scampering  about,  and,  as 
it  seemed,  fairly  trembling  in  their  eagerness  as  the  snowy- 
white  combs  grew  into  those  wondrous  forms.  In  the  still- 
ness of  the  night,  interrupted  only  by  the  breathing  of  her 
boy,  she  thought  she  heard  a  faint  clicking  noise,  like  the 
tramp,  in  miniature,  of  a  thousand  horsemen.  She  turned  her 
ear  nearer  the  bees ;  it  was  indeed  their  busy  wrork,  and  the 
sound  of  their  tiny  mandibles  against  the  glass ;  for  they  were 
fastening  bits  of  comb  to  it,  in  many  places,  as  they  wished 
to  have  their  habitation  substantial  and  secure.  How  inno- 
cent and  pure  her  boy  looked  as  he  lay  there,  unconscious  that 
any  one  was  near,  sleeping  as  only  those  can  sleep  who  are 
tired  out  with  honest,  healthful  labor !  She  reflected  how- 
faithful  and  industrious  he  had  been  of  late.  So  absorbed 
was  he  with  his  bees,  he  had  hardly  had  time  to  think  of  go- 
ing off  with  any  of  the  wicked  boys  as  he  had  a  few  months 


MERRYLANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  57 

previous  been  somewhat  inclined  to  do.  What  had  made 
sucli  a  difference  in  her  family?  She  almost  started,  as  it 
flashed  upon  her  mind  that  there  before  her  she  saw  the  answer 
to  her  prayer  of  but  a  few  weeks  ago.  Down  she  fell  on  her 
knees,  at  the  thought,  and  silently  thanked,  again  and  again. 
that  Savior  who  had  been  an  ever-present  help  in  trouble. 
Then,  as  she  remembered  her  husband  who  was  still  out  of 
work,  she  prayed  for  him,  too.  It  was  Saturday  night;  but 
as  she  at  length  lay  down  to  rest  it  was  with  a  greater  feeling 
of  nearness  to  God  than  she  had  ever  known  before,  and  with 
a  happy  trustful  restful  feeling  that  seemed  to  her  almost 
too  much  happiness  for  one  who  had,  almost  all  her  life  before 
this,  known  so  much  trial  and  trouble. 

The  next  thing  she  remembered  was  hearing  John's  voice, 
calling,  "  O  mother  !  father  !  come  quick  !  the  queen  is  laying- 
right  next  to  the  glass.  Come  quick,  or  she  may  go  round  the 
other  side  again  !  "  and  off  he  scampered  up  stairs.  At  first, 
the  feeling  was  somewhat  of  vexation  at  being  awakened  at 
such  an  early  hour  on  Sunday  morning;  but  as  she  thought  of 
the  events  of  the  evening  before,  and  reflected  further  that 
the  sun  was  already  up  and  shining,  she  hastened  to  get  upr 
as  did  her  husband  also,  after  he  rubbed  his  (yes  until  he 
was  quite  awake.  Mary  was  on  hand  too  ;  and  although  all 
the  family  looked  a  little  as  if  they  had  been  scared  out  by  an 
alarm  of  fire,  they  soon  began  to  share  John's  enthusiasm,  at 
least  to  some  extent.  There  the  .queen  was  with  her  long- 
tapering  body,  busily  engaged  at  her  appointed  task,  as  un- 
concerned as  if  she  were  not  the  center  of  an  admiring  audi- 
ence. Her  mock  gravity  as  she  settled  herself  in  a  cell,  and 
remained  the  center  of  a  caressing  circle  of  bees,  was  such 
that  John  laughed  until  the  tears  stood  in  his  eyes. 

"  O  mother  !  mother  !  may  I  go  over  and  ask  Freddie  Mer- 
ry banks  to  come  over  and  see  her  too  ?  Please,  mother,  it 
won't  be  wicked  to  come  over  just  a  minute.    You  know  she 


58  MEKRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

will  get  this  side  all  tilled  to-day.  and  won't  ever  come  out  this 
way  again.    Please,  mother,  may  I  go  ?  " 

Silence  gave  consent,  so  John  thought,  and  off  he  was  like 
an  arrow.  Fearing  his  mother  might  repent,  as  it  seemed,  he 
jumped  almost  the  whole  way  from  the  top  of  the  stairs  to  the 
bottom,  and  was  soon  out  of  hearing,  if  not  out  of  sight.  In  a 
very  short  time,  not  only  Freddie  was  seen  coming,  but  friend 
Merrybanks  too.  John's  father  was  a  little  surprised  at  this, 
knowing  his  strict  ideas  in  regard  to  the  Sabbath ;  but  after 
all  had  looked  at  the  queen,  and  friend  M.  had  given  them  a 
little  talk  in  regard  to  the  greatness  and  goodness  of  God  in 
endowing  these  little  creatures  with  such  a  wonderful  in- 
stinct, Mary,  apparently  by  accident,  turned  the  whole  state 
of  affairs  in  the  right  direction  after  all,  by  coming  up  to  her 
father, and  siying,  as  she  took  his  hand  in  both  of  hers,— 

"  Now,  pa,  we  have  all  had  such  a  real  good  time  in  looking 
at  the  queen,  you  will  come  with  us  to  Sunday-school,  won't 
you  V    You  see  if  we  do  not  have  just  as  good  a  time  there." 

Friend  M.  joined  in  the  request  too ;  and,  almost  before  he 
had  time  to  consider,  he  gave  a  promise,  and  then  reflected 
that  he  had  no  suitable  clothes  to  go  to  such  a  place.  In  fact, 
he  had  not  been  inside  of  a  meeting-house  in  so  long  a  time, 
he  hardly  knew  how  folks  did  dress  or  act  there.  John's 
mother  listened,  while  her  heart  almost  stood  still.  Was  the 
time  of  miracles  still  here  V  Was  it  really  possible  that  God 
had  heard  that  prayer  of  *mly  last  night  ?  and  was  her  hus- 
band really  going  with  the  rest  to  church  or  Sabbath-school  ? 
He  was  a  man  of  his  word,  despite  his  other  failings,  and  he 
did  go  to  that  very  little  church,  the  steeple  of  which  you  have 
so  often  noticed  over  among  the  trees.  He  did  not  seem  to  get 
interested  in  the  sermon,  and  finally  went  to  sleep,  much  to 
his  wife's  surprise  and  mortification.  After  service,  during  the 
few  moments  that  intervened  before  the  Sunday-school,  the 
superintendent  took  him  by  the  hand  and  spoke  pleasantly  to 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 


.V.» 


him.  though  still  not  in  such  a  way  as  to  remind  him  that  it 
was  singular  to  see  him  there ;  and  in  the  Bihle-class.  where 
he  sat  with  his  wife,  there  seemed  such  a  pleasant  and  friendly 
feeling,  he  really,  somewhat  to  his  surprise,  enjoyed  it  so  that 
he  was  actually  sorry  when  it  was  over.  On  the  way  home  he- 
asked  so  many  questions  of  bis  wife  in  regard  to  the  lesson 
and  people  present,  that  she  forgot  his  sleeping  during  the 
morning,  and  was  again  inwardly  thanking  God  for  his  great 
mercies.  After  supper  he  lighted  his  pipe,  and,  in  spite  of  his 
wife's  pleading,  sauntered  off  up  to  the  "  Corners  "  as  usual. 
Who  shall  fathom  the  mystery  of  the  human  heart  ? 

Next  evening  friend  Merrybanks  came  over,  with  a  number 
of  the  British  Bee-Journal.  All  hands  gathered  eagerly  around 
while  he  spread  it  out  upon  the  table.  Mary,  too.  was  inter- 
ested, for  that  pail  bee-hive  seemed  especially  the  property  of 
the  children  since  the  stampede  down  by  the  hog-pen  ;  and  as 
friend  M.  announced  that  they  had  started  a  round  cheap 
hive  in  England  too.  all  were  eager  to  see  what  it  was  like. 
We  will  just  take  a  peep  over  their  shoulders  at  the  picture 
they  saw  on  the  broad  clean  pages  of  the  journal. 


THE   CHEESE  BOX  BEE-HIVE- 


HO  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

After  all  had  taken  a  good  look  at  the  picture,  Mr.  M.  read 
from  the  description  as  follows : — 

CHEAP   HIVE   FOR   AMATEURS. 

I  send  you  a  sketch  and  description  of  a  very  cheap  hive,  which  some 
•of  your  readers,  who  make  their  own,  may  try  their  hands  upon.  It  is 
made  out  of  two  and  a  half  American  cheese-boxes,  which  cost  me  four- 
pence  each;  one  15  inches  in  diameter  serves  for  the  inner  skin,  and  one 
of  16  inches  in  diameter  for  the  outer  skin  of  the  hive.  (The  usual  depth 
of  these  boxes  is  from  9  to  10  inches.)  The  inner  skin  should  be  three- 
eighths  of  an  inch  higher  than  the  outer  to  form  the  feather  edge  on 
which  the  frames  are  to  rest.  The  two  skins  are  kept  apart  by  a  double 
hoop  U  of  an  inch  wide,  placed  at  the  top  and  bottom.  These  may  be 
made  by  cutting  into  halves  the  hoops  of  the  box,  and  as  they  are  usually 
%  of  an  inch  thick,  they  will  keep  the  two  skins  Y2  of  an  inch  apart,  and 
thus  form  a  sufficient  air-space  between  them.  As  strong  a  hoop  as  can 
be  got  from  the  boxes  and  lids  must  be  put  round  the  hive,  standing  one 
inch  above  the  outer  skin,  and  another  at  five-eighths  of  an  inch  below 
the  outer  skin.  Room  will  thus  be  given  for  the  thickness  of  the  frames 
and  quilt  above,  and  the  floor-board  will  be  overlapped  below,  and  wet 
and  rain  excluded.  The  floor-board  is  made  from  the  box-lid  and  bottom. 
These  are  usually  in  three  pieces,  and  when  nailed  together  should  be 
crossed  under  side-pieces.  Of  these  the  middle  one  should  project,  to 
form  the  alighting-board,  and  the  deficiency  supplied  from  any  piece  of 
wood  at  hand.  The  floor-board  will  thus  be  double.  The  upper  thick- 
ness is  cut  away,  sloping  upward  to  form  a  sunk  entrance  into  the  hive. 
The  floor-board  is  represented  in  its  place  in  Fig.  1,  which  represents 
a  section  from  side  to  side  with  one  of  the  middle  frames  in  position. 
The  hive  has  a  cover  made  from  half  a  box,  five  inches  in  height,  and 
over  this  is  a  conical  top  made  of  paper-felt,  painted,  and  fastened  with 
thin  copper  wire  to  the  wooden  part;  the  flight-hole,  porch,  and  slot  for 
slides  or  doors,  which  are  made  of  strong  tin  or  zinc  bent  to  shape.  Fig. 
2  shows  the  arrangement  of  the  frames,  ten  in  number.  Half  of  them 
have  distance -blocks  toward  the  front,  and  half  toward  the  back,  both 
blocks  being  on  the  same  side  of  each  frame.  In  the  center  are  2  movable 
blocks  attached  to  the  side  of  hive  by  a  thin  but  strong  piece  of  string. 
When  manipulating  they  are  lifted  out,  and  thus  room  is  given  to  move 
all  the  frames.  The  whole  cost  of  materials,  iucluding  paint,  panel- 
nails,  screws  (if  any),  and  putty,  is  about  28.,  and  certainly  does  not  ex- 
ceed 2s.  6<J. ;  but  I  must  add,  that  there  is  a  good  deal  of  work  in  the  hive, 
and  it  requires  much  nicety  in  fitting,  though  not  more  than  most  ama- 
teur carpenters  are  equal  to. 


MERBYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  61 

The  result  is  a  round  hive,  which  in  shape  corresponds  with  that  of  a 
cluster  of  bees,  and  I  think  is  dryer  than  the  square  hives,  in  the  corners 
of  which  moisture  is  apt  to  be  condensed;  and,  secondly,  is  much  more 
shapely  and  ornamental  in  a  garden,  and  equally  adapted  for  carrying- 
supers  of  any  kind  desired. 

••  There."*  said  Mr.  M..  "  they  have  not  got  so  near  a  sphere  as 
we  have,  after  all,  and  the  hive  is  a  deal  more  expensive  every 
way.  The  combs  would  handle  nicely  after  one  is  out;  for  by 
moving  them  toward  the  center,  every  one  would  be  free, 
while,  when  in  place  and  the  loose  block  put  in,  all  are  tight 
and  strong.** 

"  But.""  said  John.  "  they  have  eight  frames,  while  we  have 
in  our  hive  but  rive,  and  such  frames  as  those  must  be  a  great 
deal  of  trouble  to  make."'  You  see,  John  was  something  of  a 
genius,  and  knew  the  expense  of  whittling  out  things. 

"Nevertheless,"  remarked  Mr.  M.,  **  I  am  very  glad  to  see 
this  description,  for  it  indicates  a  wish,  on  the  part  of  the 
people,  to  make  common  implements  and  utensils  serve  a  part 
in  providing  habitations  and  implements  for  the  care  and 
comfort  of  our  queer  little  domestic  friends.  Many  thanks  to 
the  editor  of  the  B.  B.  J."  And  he  gathered  up  the  journal, 
and  put  it  in  one  of  his  many  pockets,  grabbed  up  Mary,  and 
placing  her  on  one  of  his  broad  shoulders,  started  out  in  the 
darkness  of  the  night,  amid  her  protests  and  the  laughter  of 
the  whole  family.  Before  he  had  gone  many  steps,  however — 
come  to  think  of  it,  I  guess  I  will  tell  wrhat  an  awful  muss 
they  got  into  by  some  more  of  that  boy  John's  "  everlasting 
carelessness.*"  in  the  next  chapter. 


62  MERKYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

CHAPTER  XX. 

"  THEIR   FEET   WERE   SWIFT  TO   DO  EVIL.*' 

BEFORE  I  tell  you  of  the  mishap  of  friend  M.  with  Mary 
on  his  shoulder,  I  shall  have  to  explain  that  John  and 
the  doctor's  boy— didn't  I  tell  you  they  had  a  doctor  in 
Onionville  ?  Well,  they  have  one,  and  a  very  good  doctor  he 
is,  too,  only,  like  a  great  many  other  doctors,  he  thinks  him- 
self too  wise,  or  something,  to  be  seen  in  Sunday-school,  and 
lie  also,  it  is  said,  takes  medicine  quite  frequently  out  of  a 
bottle,  when  he  isn't  sick  at  all.  #Well,  John  and  the  doctor's 
boy  had  made  a  bargain  with  a  farmer  a  little  out  of  town  to 
hoe  corn  for  him  until  they  had  paid  for  a  hive  of  bees.  Un- 
der the  inspiration  of  the  bee-fever  they  worked  hard  and  pa- 
tiently, and  the  farmer,  who  wras  a  very  good  old  man,  gave 
them  one  of  his  best,  heavy  with  honey  and  bees,  as  they 
usually  are  in  the  month  of  June.  As  soon  as  their  task  was 
completed,  boy-like  they  must  have  their  bees  home  at  once  ; 
and  although  the  farmer  told  them  they  were  too  tired  to 
carry  them  that  Jiight,  nothing  would  do  but  that  they  must 
be  taken  right  along.  With  a  little  smoke  they  were  all  driven 
into  the  hive,  and  a  sheet  tied  under  the  mouth,  and  the  cor- 
ners brought  over  the  top  and  tied.  Under  the  knots  a  stick 
was  placed,  and  the  boys  started  home  with  them  full  of  en- 
thusiasm. It  was  at  the  close  of  a  warm  day,  and  they  were 
tired  before  they  started,  and  it  was  nothing  strange  that 
their  zeal  considerably  abated  before  they  got  to  the  village 
through  which  they  had  to  pass. 

"  O  John  !  *'  said  the  doctor's  toy,  "  I  am  awful  thirsty  ;  let 
us  stop  at  the  grocery  and  get  some  beer." 

John  knew  his  mother  would  feel  badly  if  she  knew  he  bad 
been  drinking  beer;  but  he  knew,  too,  that  Tom  would  jeer 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  63 

at  him  if  he  said  any  thing  about  his  mother;  so  lie  only  made 
the  objection  that  it  cost  money. 

wt  But  I'll  stand  treat,  and  so  it  won't  cost  you  any  thing;  " 
and  before  John  could  offer  a  word  more,  the  bees  were  hastily 
set  down,  and  the  beer  was  ordered.  They  had  been  enjoined, 
when  starting  out,  not  to  set  the  hive  flat  down  when  they 
stopped  to  rest ;  but  this  they  forgot  all  about,  and  down  it 
went,  the  mouth  in  the  soft  dust  of  the  road,  closing  every  air- 
passage  through  the  cloth,  which  was  already  densely  covered 
with  panting  bees.  It  was  nearly  dark  when  they  got  home, 
and  John,  being,  unlike  the  doctor's  boy,  not  much  used  to 
even  mild  stimulants,  had  a  headache  that  made  him  glad  to 
set  the  bees  down  anywhere.  Accordingly  it  was  deposited 
on  a  corner  of  the  doorstep.  Just  at  this  juncture  some  boys- 
came  along  and  called  to  them  that  they  were  going  over  to 
the  doctor's  to  kill  the  toads  that  were  eating  up  his  bees. 
John  objected,  on  the  ground  that  their  bees  must  be  located 
and  let  out. 

kt  Why,  they  can't  fly  any  to-night,"  said  one  of  the  boys ; 
••  come  on,  and  see  us  demolish  the  toads." 

"  We  will  have  lots  of  fun  with  them,"1  said  another,  and 
off  they  went,  laughing  and  yelling  as  only  a  tribe  of  street- 
boys  can  do.  Down  went  the  hive  again,  and  off  John  and 
Tom  put  after  them,  tired  as  they  were.  Again  was  John  led 
away  against  his  better  judgment,  because  he  had  not  the 
strength  of  mind  to  say  no  when  invited.  After  they  had  tor- 
tured and  murdered  all  the  toads  and  frogs  they  could  find, 
the  boys  ventured  near  the  doctor's  house,  where  he  and  a 
brother  bee-keeper  wrere  discussing  the  cause  of  the  losses 
last  winter. 


n4 


MERRTBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 


THE    DOCTOR    AND   THE    SHOEMAKER    DISCUSSING    THE    REE- 
DISEASE. 

John  got  home  quite  late;  and  as  his  conscience  troubled 
him  in  regard  to  the  events  of  the  last  few  hours,  he  slipped 
in  quietly  and  kept  pretty  still,  until  he  became  interested  in 
friend  Merry  banks1  reading.  By  this  time  he  had  forgotten 
all  about  the  bee-hive,  and  never  thought  of  it  again  until 
friend  M.  stumbled  against  it  in  the  dark,  as  I  began  to  tell 
you  in  the  last  chapter.  At  the  scream  and  commotion, 
John's  mother  brought  a  light,  and  friend  M.  was  just  picking 
himself  up  out  of  the  dust,  after  having  stumbled  over  the 
hive.  Mary  was,  of  course,  unhurt,  for  he  took  good  care  to 
hold  her  up  safely ;  but,  oh  my  !  what  a  looking  sight  was 
that  hive  !  The  combs  were  nearly  all  melted  and  broken 
down  in  one  dauby,  sticky  mass,  and  bees  as  black  as  ink  were 
dragging  their  daubed  and  sticky  bodies  through  the  dust,  in 


MEKKVI JANK8  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  85 

hopeless  misery.  Friend  M.  locked  just  one  second,  and  then 
gathered  up  tlie  sheets,  and  stopped  the  poor  innocents  from 
getting  out. 

••Have  you  got  a  queenless  hive,  with  plenty  of  empty 
combs  ?  '"  asked  he  quickly  of  John's  father. 

••  Yes,  sir  ;  two  of  'em."* 

"  Bring  the  light  and  guide  me  to  them." 

At  this  he  lifted  the  sticky  hive,  and  all  went  for  the  apiary. 

•■  John,  put  an  empty  story  on  this  hive."* 

John  was  ready  enough  now  to  obey  orders.  The  hive  was 
on.  and  the  bees  were  then  carefully  poured  on  the  tops  of 
the  frames  and  astonished  bees  below.  All  hands  soon  set  to 
work  so  busily  licking  up  the  honey,  that  they  forgot  to 
sting ;  and  after  the  crawling  bees  were  down  in  the  hive,  the 
combs  were  lifted  carefully,  and  set  up  against  the  sides  in 
such  a  way  that  the  bees  could  care  for  the  unsealed  brood, 
and  the  sealed  could  hatch  out.  In  this  way.  the  whole  con- 
tents were  disposed  of.  Of  course,  bees  kept  crawling  up  the 
sides  of  this  second  story,  but  John  brushed  them  back,  while 
his  father  held  the  light  at  a  little  distance.  After  the  hive 
was  pretty  nearly  empty,  friend  M.  set  it  down,  and  asked 
for  the  other  queenless  colony.  With  a  quick  but  quiet  move- 
ment this  colony,  being  in  a  Simplicity  hive,  was  raised  and 
set  over  the  one  containing  the  drowned  bees,  and  not  a  bee 
was  mashed,  nor  could  one  more  crawl  out  in  the  dirt  with- 
out coming  through  the  clean,  live  bees  in  the  lower  story  of 
this  three-story  triple  colony. 

••  But  won't  they  fight  ?  "  said  John. 

••  No  danger  of  fighting,  with  all  this  mass  of  honey  to  take 
care  of."  said  Mr.  M.:  and  he  moved  the  whole  back  a  little, 
so  as  to  give  a  larger  entrance.  "  The  daubed  bees  will  nat- 
urally crawl  upward,  and  are  sure  to  get  licked  off  clean,  no 
matter  which  way  they  go.     The  bees  from  above  and  below 


66  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

will,  unitedly,  have  every  thing  clean  before  morning,  and 
the  loose  honey  all  put  near  the  brood  in  the  good  combs." 

The  old  sticky  hive  was  then  set  over  a  colony  with  a  good 
queen,  and  all  went  home.  I  do  not  know  what  the  rest  of 
them  dreamed  when  they  got  to  sleep  ;  but  poor',  tired,  sticky, 
guilty  John  dreamed  he  was  a  queen-bee  pursued  by  a  great 
monster  of  a  toad  with  horrid  eyes  and  a  great  club.  This 
club  was  full  of  sharp  spikes;  and  as  he  raised  it  oveijhim. 
John  distinctly  recalled  the  look  of  the  poor  toads  as  they 
dealt  them  blow  after  blow,  without  mercy,  just  the  evening; 
before. 


JOHN  S   DREAM. 

With  a  scream  of  terror  John  awoke  to  find  it  was  only  a 
terrible  nightmare,  and,  what  was  more  strange,  it  was  his- 


MEKKYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 


67 


mother's  soothing  voice  that  quieted  his  nerves  and  bid  him 
tell  her  all  about  it.  How  came  she  there  at  such  a  time  of 
night  V  She  came  to  pray  for  her  boy  at  his  bedside,  as  she 
had  so  many  times  before,  and  God  had  answered  her  by  so 
ordering  it  that  she  should  be  there  at  just  the  time,  of  all 
others,  when  John  would  be  most  likely  to  tell  her  of  his  first 
steps  in  sin.  lie  told  her  all  about  the  events  of  the  evening, 
and  promised  her  not  only  to  never  allow  another  drop  of  beer 
to  pass  his  lips,  but  to  carefully  avoid  the  society  of  bad  and 
wicked  boys,  even  though  he  had  to  stay  at  home  without 
company  at  all.  Before  going  back,  she  opened  her  little  Bi- 
ble and  read.— 

"  My  son,  if  sinners  entice  thee,  consent  thou  not,"  etc. 
Friend  M.  came  over  in  the  morning,  and  John  just  laughed 
to  see  that  all  the  bees  were  clean  and  comparatively  bright. 
The  hives  were  taken  apart,  and  each  restored  as  near  as  pos- 
sible, to  its  original  place.    The  brood  from  the  box  hive  was 
nicely  put  into  frames,  and  as  half  the  hive  belonged   to 
stock  was  fairly  divided,  giving  Tom  the  queen, 
while  John  had  a  capped  cell  in  his.     Tom 
came  after  his   colony  in  the    afternoon, 
bringing  a  lot  of  boys  with  him.     When 
some  instruction  was  offered  him  in  regard 
to    moving   them,  he   declined,  saying  he 
knew  how  to  handle  bees  as  well  as  any- 
body.   He  would  not  even  accept  the  loan 
of  a  veil  or  smoker,  saying  his  father  never 
used  any  such  things,  and  he  knew  how.    I 
really  can  not  spare  the  time  to  tell  you  how 
tom,  the  doc-   Tom  prospered  with  his  bees,  but  I  will 
tor's  son.       give  you  his  picture  as  he  appeared  next  day. 
Oood-bv.  kind  friends,  until  next  time. 


Tom, 


68  MERKYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

SOMETHING    ABOUT   HOW  THEY   ARE  GOING  TO    FEED  THEIR 
T.EES   IN   ONION YILLE    THIS   WINTER. 

JOHN'S  father  had  a  little  piece  of  land,  which  he  culti- 
vated after  a  fashion,  when  he  had  no  other  work  on 
hand.  lie  had  this  year  got  it  planted  to  corn,  and  the 
corn  was  up  so  as  to  need  cultivating.  To  do  this,  he  must 
borrow  a  horse ;  but,  strangely,  this  year  everybody  wanted  to 
use  their  horses,  or  else  they  had  not  much  sympathy  for  a 
man  who  seemed  to  take  life  so  very  easily,  and  so  the  corn 
was  growing  up  to  weeds.  His  wife  gently  remonstrated ;  but 
he  replied  that,  as  no  horse  was  to  be  had.  he  did  not  see  how 
the  matter  could  well  be  helped,  and  so  kept  on  smoking  his 
pipe  quite  complacently.  This  was  very  trying  to  her,  and 
even  John  urged  that  they  should  go  at  it  and  hoe  the  corn 
without  cultivating  it. 

"  Why  not  buy  a  horse,  father  ?  " 

Sure  enough ;  why  not  buy  a  horse,  and  be  independent  of 
these  pesky  neighbors,  who  never  cared  whether  they  accom- 
modated a  body  or  not  ?  But  where  was  the  money?  lie  saun- 
tered off.  and,  before  night,  returned  with  the  information  that 
he  had  found  a  horse,  and  that  the  man  would  give  him  time 
on  it,  with  one  condition.  The  condition  was,  that  their  little 
home  should  be  mortgaged  as  security.  John's  mother  had 
been  praying  for  their  little  family,  oh  how  earnestly  !  but 
she  could  not  see  any  answer  to  prayer  in  all  this.  Knowing 
her  husband  as  she  did,  she  had  little  hope  that  the  money 
would  ever  be  raised.  Still,  as  John  and  his  father  both 
talked  of  how  they  could  get  lots  of  work  to  do,  if  they  only 
had  a  horse,  she  finally  consented.  The  horse  was  purchased, 
and  the  cultivator  was  started  ;  but,  somehow  or  other,  before 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  69 

the  field  was  half  gone  over,  even  one  way,  the  horse  was 
turned  out,  and  our  friend  sat  in  the  yard  smoking  his  pipe 
as  in  times  past.  It  did  not  matter  how  busy  the  birds  were, 
building  their  nests,  nor  how  eager  the  bees  were  in  gathering 
pollen  from  the  early  sweet  corn  that  was  already  beginning  to 
tassel,  nor  how  busy  the  rest  of  the  town  were  in  their  gardens, 
cornfields,  and  meadows,  this  man  sat  and  smoked  his  pipe 
all  the  same.  His  poor  wife  was  trying  in  vain  to  remember 
some  passage  in  her  little  Bible  that  would  give  one  comfort 
and  cheer  in  a  time  like  this.  She  remembered  some  passages 
in  the  Psalms  that  had  always  before  seemed  strange  and  un- 
accountable to  her.    Here  was  one  of  them  : — 

Hear  my  prayer,  O  Lord,  and  let  my  cry  come  unto  thee.  Hide  not 
thy  face  from  me  in  the  day  when  I  am  in  trouble  :  incline  thine  ear  un- 
to me  :  in  the  day  when  I  call,  answer  me  speedily.— Ps.  102:1,  2. 

Was  it  all  this  trouble  that  was  beginning  to  show  her  how 
David  felt  when  he  said,  "  Hear  my  prayer,''  "  hide  not  thy 
face,"  and,  "incline  thine  ear7"  ?  Was  it  possible  that  God 
knew  all  this  trouble  would  result  in  her  own  good,  if  she 
took  it  in  a  way  that  sent  her  to  him  as  her  only  refuge  in  the 
time  of  trouble,  with  a  faith  that  made  her  prayer  importuni- 
ty ?  If  so,  O  Lord,  thy  will,  not  mine,  ba  done.  And  then 
she  read  the  following  verses  from  the  same  Psalm  :— 

But  thou,  O  Lord,  shalt  endure  for  ever  ;  and  thy  remembrance  unto 
all  generations.  He  will  regard  the  prayer  of  the  destitute,  and  not  de- 
spise their  prayer. 

After  this  she  felt  that  in  some  way  deliverance  was  com- 
ing ;  so  she  went  on  with  her  work  with  a  trust  in  that  prom- 
ise that  he  would  "  regard  the  prayer  of  the  destitute.'"  ;t  I 
will  do  just  the  best  I  can,  and  be  not  troubled,'1  she  said  to 
herself. 

Just  here  the  doctor  drove  up  in  his  gig,  and,  meeting  friend 
Merrybanks,  who  was  going  in  the  opposite  direction,  asked 
him  how  he  should  feed  his  bees  after  basswood  had  ceased. 
The  doctor  and  the  shoemaker,  as  well  as  John's  father,  had 


70  MERRYBANK3  AND  HIS    NEIGHBOR. 

all  increased  their  bees  in  order  to  fill  their  empty  hives,  and 
save  their  combs  from  the  moth.  They  had  also  seemed  some 
comb  honey,  but  many  of  the  colonies  were  weak  in  bees,  and 
almost  all  of  them  needed  stores.  As  the  shoemaker  did  not 
live  far  off,  he  saw  the  three  talking,  and  came  to  hear  what 
it  was  all  about;  so  friend  M.  had  an  opportunity  of  talking 
to  them  all  together. 

MR.    MERRYUANKS  TELLS   HOW  TO   FEED   BEES  THE   FIRST   OF 

AUGUST,   SO   AS  TO   GET  THEM   IN  THE   BEST 

POSSIBLE  WINTERING  TRIM. 

"  My  friends,  we  must  take  into  consideration  that,  although 
we  seldom  have  honey  enough  after  this  time  for  bees  to  build 
up  to  the  best  advantage,  so  as  to  be  ready  for  winter,  we  usu- 
ally have  some  honey ;  and  we  do  not  want  our  feeding  to 
stand  in  the  way  of  having  the  bees  get  all  they  can  from  nat- 
ural sources.  I  once  fed  a  weak  nucleus  about  40  lbs.  of  honey 
in  the  fall,  to  build  them  up  into  a  strong  colony,  which  I  suc- 
ceeded in  doing,  but  they  stuck  to  the  feeder  all  day  long,  to 
the  entire  exclusion  of  going  to  the  fields;  and  as  the  fall  hap- 
pened to  be  one  when  bees  worked  on  the  second  crop  of  red 
clover,  I  had  others  that,  during  the  same  time,  built  up  of 
themselves,  and  even  gave  us  some  honey  in  surplus-boxes. 
The  feeding  was  not  only  an  expensive  operation,  but  it  was 
really  a  damage  to  them,  for  it  got  them  finally  so  they  would 
not  work  at  all.  unless  it  was  to  bring  in  the  little  pollen  they 
needed.  If  you  want  to  make  these  colonies  which  are  poor 
in  bees  and  stores,  winter,  it  will  by  no  means  answer  to  say 
we  will  let  them  take  their  chances.  If  the  yield  of  honey 
stops  for  only  two  weeks,  it  will  cause  the  queens  to  cease  lay- 
ing, to  a  great  extent,  and  old  queens  will  sometimes  stop  al- 
most entirely.  The  yield  of  honey  is  most  favorable  for 
brood-rearing  when  it  comes  just  fast  enough  to  cause  the 
bees  to  build  a  little  snow-white  comb  along  the  tops  of  the 
frames.    You  all  know  what  this  is,  when  you  see,  by  turning 


MERRY  BANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  71 

the  mat  back,  this  thrifty  white  look  on  the  combs,  just  over 
the  center  of  the  brood-nest."' 

Here  friend  M.  gathered  up  his  reins,  and  was  about  to  go 
on  ;  but  they  almost  with  one  accord  begged  him  to  tell  them 
what  they  should  feed. 

k-  You  wish  to  use  something  that  will  be  the  safest  and 
best  for  winter  stores,  and  no  mistake  about  it  ? "" 

kk  Yes.  sir,**  said  they  almost  all  at  once. 

"  Well,  then,  use  granulated  sugar,  and  nothing  else.**  and 
he  prepared  to  stait  again. 

'•But,  hold  on  a  minute,**  said  John's  father;  "hou-  shall 
we  feed  it  ?  "  You  see.  he  always  had  an  eye  out  for  the  la- 
bor to  be  performed,  and  wanted  just  the  very  easiest  way. 

kt  Oh,  yes  !  and  I  had  almost  forgotten  to  say  that  I  would 
feed  only  at  evening,  and  just  so  much  as  they  would  take  up 
at  night,  and  no  more.  I  never  wTant  to  see  bees  hanging 
around  feeders  during  the  day  time.  "Neither  do  I  like  to  see 
feeders  around  in  sight  in  the  day  time  to  entice  robber-bees 
and  flies  to  hang  around  them,  attracted  by  the  scent  of  the 
sugar  they  had  contained  the  night  before.  I  do  not  feel  as 
much  like  advising  candy  as  I  did  a  few  years  ago,  on  several 
accounts.  It  is  true,  it  is  but  little  trouble ;  but  if  the  bees 
take  it  as  fast  ass  they  Fhould.  the>  have  to  be  constantly 
bringing  water  from  somewhere.  Besides,  it  crumbles  down, 
and  grains  of  it  get  out  around  the  alighting-board  to  attract 
flies  and  robber-bees  as  before.  Worst  of  all.  it  is  pretty 
hard  to  so  manage  it  that,  when  it  is  all  used  up,  the  bees  will 
not  have  a  comb  built  in  its  place.  Frames  having  a  little 
piece  of  comb  in  them,  to  be  bundled  about  in  the  apiary,  are 
not  wiiat  we  want.  The  small  supply  that  the  bees  need,  to 
enable  them  to  build  up  to  the  best  advantage,  must  be  given 
regularly :  if  you  miss  even  one  or  two  days,  it  will  show  a 
break  in  the  amount  of  eggs  laid.  You  also  wish  to  keep  so 
sharp  an  eye  on  the  proceedings  that,  should  natural  stores 


72  MERKYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

commence  to  come  in  at  any  time,  sufficient  for  the  purpose, 
you  can  stop  right  off  short,  for  we  do  not  wish  to  waste  sugar, 
unless  it  is  absolutely  necessary,  I  think  I  would  use  a  Sim- 
plicity feeder,  and  either  place  it  on  the  outside  of  the  divi- 
sion-board, or  on  the  top  of  the  frames,  turning  back  the  mat 
enough  to  let  the  bees  to  it.  If  handier,  just  fill  the  feeder 
with  granulated  sugar,  and  then  pour  on  water  from  a  coffee- 
pot whenever  you  wish  to  feed  them.  The  amount  of  water 
poured  on  wili  determine  the  amount  you  wish  to  give  them. 
AVhen  you  wish  to  fix  them  for  winter  I  would  put  a  division- 
board  in  each  side  of  the  hive  :  this  will  leave  room  for  six  or 
seven  brood-combs,  and  I  would  not  attempt  to  winter  a  colo- 
ny that  would  not  cover  pretty  well  at  least  six  combs.  Fix 
the  combs  as  you  wish  them  to  remain  over  winter;  see  that 
the  queen  is  laying ;  then  cover  them  with  a  mat,  having  a 
two-inch  hole  cut  through  it  right  over  where  the  center  of 
the  brood-nest  comes.  This  hole  can  be  quickly  cut  with  a 
two-inch  punch,  such  as  tinners  use.  In  fact,  you  can  cut 
quite  a  number  at  once.  Put  on  the  mat,  and  set  your  Sim- 
plicity feeder  right  beside  this  hole.  This  should  be  arranged 
about  the  middle  of  September.  Now  feed  them  until  they 
get  every  thing  waxed  up  solid.  Feed  them  so  that  the  swarm 
can  not  possibly  get  over  to  any  side  of  the  hive  where  there 
are  no  sealed  stores,  for  the  brood-nest  is  in  the  center,  and 
sealed  stores  are  all  around  them  a  solid  wall  of  food,  and 
pure,  wholesome  food  too.  If  you  leave  the  hole  in  them  at 
open  all  winter,  you  will  have  about  the  same  conditions  as 
those  who  leave  sections  on  all  winter.  If  you  think  there 
should  be  something  in  the  upper  story  to  keep  them  warmer, 
fill  it  with  forest-leaves.  If  you  don't  like  that  way,  put  in 
your  usual  chaff  cushions.  If  you  have  bees  in  plenty,  so  as  to 
crowd  out  of  the  hive,  unless  it  is  pretty  cool,  and  they  have 
an  abundance  of  pure  sugar  stores,  they  will  probably  winter 


MEKRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  71? 

well  almost  anywhere.  Git  up,  Dobbin  !  I  have  stayed  too 
long  already." 

••Just  a  minute  more,"  said  John's  father.  "About  how 
much  sugar  will  it  take  to  fill  them  all  up  in  this  way  ? ,? 

"  It  they  have  no  stores  to  speak  of  August  1st,  but  good 
combs,  it  will  take  from  20  to  25  lbs.  perhaps.    Git  up  1 " 

"  Please,  just  one  thing  more  :  Can't  we  get  along  without 
buying  feeders  ?  '•' 

••  Why,  come  to  think  of  it,  I  do  not  know  but  that  you  can. 
Just  spread  the  sugar  all  around  the  auger-hole,  and  then 
drop  on  slowly  as  much  water  as  you  can  without  having  it 
run  down  into  the  hive  too  much.  When  the  bees  have  licked 
it  dry.  wet  it  again.  I  once  fed  a  colony  thus  for  winter,  and 
they  came  through  nicely.     Git  up,  Bobbin  /" 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

Fear  not,  Daniel:  for  from  the  first  day  that  thou  di  :st  set  thine 
heart  to  understand,  and  to  chasten  thyself  before  thy  God,  thy  words 
were  heard.— Dan.  10:12. 

IT  was  Saturday.  John's  father  sat  out  in  front  of  the 
house,  smoking  as  usual.  I  have  mentioned  that  they 
had  secured  a  small  amount  of  honey  from  their  bees,  be- 
sides increasing  to  get  bees  to  cover  the  empty  combs.  Well. 
John's  mother  had,  by  the  use  of  an  extractor,  also  secured  a 
stone  crock  full  of  most  beautiful,  thick,  crystal,  basswood 
honey,  which  she  had  purposed  saving  for  family  use.  How- 
ever, as  her  husband  was  out  of  work,  or  at  least  thought  he 
was.  there  was  very  great  need  of  a  little  cash  to  supply  the 
needs  of  the  table,  and  even  to  get  clothing  to  make  the  chil- 
dren look  decent,  when  they  went  to  Sunday-school.    As  a  last 


74  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

resort,  she  had  decided  to  sell  this  crock  of  nice  honey,  and 
so  John  had  been  up  to  the  grocery  with  a  small  sample  of  it. 
The  grocer  offered  16  cents  per  lb.,  in  consideration  of  its  be- 
ing extra  nice,  and  because  the  dry  weather  had  made  not 
only  honey,  but  fruit  and  all  kinds  of  sauce,  very  scarce.  As 
the  crock  was  quite  heavy,  friend  Merry  banks  had  volunteered 
to  talke  it  up  town,  if-  John  would  set  it  out  by  the  gate, 
where  it  would  be  handy  to  set  into  the  buggy  as  he  came 
along.  A  white  clean  cloth  had  been  tied  over  the  top  to 
keep  out  dust;  and,  as  John's  father  sat  in  sight,  nobody 
thought  but  that  it  was  safe  enough.  It  was  not  many  min- 
utes, however,  before  a  sleek-looking  cow  of  inquiring  disposi- 
tion came  along.    She  looked  this  way  and  that,  as  she  came 


THE  COW  AND  THE  CROCK  OF   HONEY 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  75 

along  the  road,  and  finally  ventured  cautiously  to  walk  slowly 
up  and  smell  of  the  crock  and  its  contents.  She  seemed  satis- 
fied, apparently,  with  her  investigations,  for,  after  one  or  two 
sniffs,  she  wound  her  tongue  around  a  loose  corner  of  the 
cloth,  much  as  she  would  a  nice  tuft  of  grass,  and,  giving'ita 
dextrous  pull,  tipped  crock  and  contents  down  on  to  the 
round  hard  stones  below. 

John's  father  saw  her  from  the  first ;  but  his  tobacco  had  so 
stupefied  his  senses  (driving  away  "dull  care"")  I  suppose,  that 
it  didn't  occur  to  him  she  might  do  any  harm,  until  the  crock, 
was  down  and  broken. 

'■  Whay  1  go  "long  there,  you  old  brute  ! " 

His  cries  brought  John  and  his  mother,  and  she,  with  tears 
in  her  eyes,  that  she  could  not  keep  back,  made  an  effort  to- 
save  some  of  the  honey  with  the  dirt,  by  scraping  it  into  a  piece 
of  the  broken  crock.  Just  at  this  crisis  friend  M.  and  his 
wife  came  up  in  the  baggy,  and.  while  John's  father  still  stood 
by  smoking  his  pipe,  friend  M.  was  out  in  an  instant;  and. 
not  until  every  particle  of  earth  or  stones  containing  a  drop 
of  honey  was  scooped  up,  did  he  even  stop  to  talk  about  it.  A 
good  swarm  of  bees  was  raised  up,  and  an  empty  Simplicity 
hive  placed  under  them.  Then  a  second  Simplicity  hive  was 
placed  over  the  colony,  and  the  pans  containing  the  dirt  and' 
honey  were  placed  in  this  upper  story.  All  of  the  stones  and 
lumps  of  earth  that  could  be  handled  were  placed  on  the- 
frames.  As  the  bees  licked  off  the  honey,  the  dirt  crumbled 
and  fell  through  to  the  bottom  of  the  hive ;  and  finally,  the 
whole  contents  of  the  pans  were  turned  over  on  the  frames 
also,  fresh  combs  being  given  the  bees  as  fast  as  they  needed 
more  room.  The  honey  was  eventually  saved,  but  it  took, 
several  days  to  get  it  done,  and  its  flavor  was  spoiled  for  any 
thing  but  bee-food.  Had  it  been  sold  at  the  grocery,  each 
pound  of  honey  would  have  bought  granulated  sugar  enough 
for  two  pounds  of  better  and  more  wholesome  food  for  the- 


76  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

bees.  After  the  honey  was  disposed  of,  friend  M.  gave  them 
a  good-natured  lecture  on  carelessness.  His  wife  ventured  to 
suggest  that  accidents  would  sometimes  happen,  any  way. 

•fc  But,  my  friends,  accidents,  the  greater  part  of  them,  need 
not  happen." 

-  Yes,"  chimed  in  John's  father.  "  If  Uncle  Billy,  the  rich 
old  curmudgeon,  would  keep  his  cows  shut  up.  instead  of 
roaming  the  streets,  preying  on  the  property  of  poor,  hard- 
working men  like  myself,  there  would  not  be  such  accidents.*' 

Uncle  Billy  was  the  rich  man  of  the  neighborhood,  and  it 
was  talked  about  that  he  let  his  cattle  run  in  the  streets  when 
the  grass  got  high,  presuming  that  no  one  would  interfere, 
just  because  he  was  rich.    Mr.  M.  therefore  began  as  follows  : 

wt  Look  here,  neighbor ;  it  is  quite  likely  that  Uncle  Billy  has 
his  faults,  like  all  the  rest  of  us  ;  but  it  is  a  very  bad  way  to 
get  into,  of  complaining  of  our  neighbors  when  any  thing  goes 
wrong.  It  is  a  great  deal  better  to  form  a  habit  of  shouldering 
what  seems  to  us  to  be  a  little  more  than  our  share  of  every 
such  transaction.  Talking  about  neighbors"  faults  seldom 
makes  them  any  better ;  but  talking  about  our  own  sins  and 
shortcomings,  in  the  proper  spirit,  almost  always  brings  about 
more  or  less  of  reform/1 

"But,  neighbor  M.,  you  don't  pretend  to  say  that  we  were 
in  any  way  at  fault  for  the  cow  being  in  the  street  and  pulling 
the  crock  of  honey  over  ?  " 

kt  I  do  mean  you  were  considerably  at  fault  in  setting  any 
thing  so  valuable  and  fragile  in  any  such  exposed  public 
place.  It  is  true,  I  should  never  have  thought  of  a  cow  being 
in  the  street,  nor  of  her  taking  any  such  mischievous  notion 
into  her  head ;  but  I  should  have  had  a  sort  of  instinctive 
dread  of  leaving  that  crock  standing  in  that  way,  outside  the 
fence,  and  this  same  feeling  would  have  prompted  me  to  put 
it  in  a  place  of  safety,  or  ask  somebody  to  watch  it.'"    ' 

"  Father  sat  right  in  plain  sight  of  it,  smoking  his  pipe, 


MBRRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  77 

when  I  put  it  there,"  suggested  John,  who.  human  like,  had 
a  sort  of  fancy  for  shoving  the  blame  off  on  somebody  else, 
even  though  that  somebody  else  was  his  own  father. 

Friend  M.  looked  at  the  pipe,  and  then  at  his  wife,  in  an 
undecided  way.  as  if  he  were  questioning  within  himself 
whether  it  would  be  well,  or  do  any  good,  to  again  attack  that 
old  subject  of  tobacco,  but  evidently  concluded  to  risk  it.  and 
proceeded.— 

•"Xeighbor,  will  you  pardon  the  liberty,  if  I  say  a  word 
more  about  that  pipe  of  yours  V  " 

John's  father  good-naturedly  removed  the  pipe  from  his 
mouth,  and.  holding  it  oft"  a  little,  while  he  contemplated  it 
with  a  smile  and  a  sort  of  twinkle  in  his  eye.  said, — 

■•  By  all  means,  friend  M.;  say  any  thing  about  the  pipe  you 
choose."  seeming  to  intimate  that,  so  long  as  he  blamed  the 
pipe,  and  not  himself,  it  would  be  all  right.  His  friend,  how- 
ever, seemed  to  have  no  purpose  of  letting  him  off  in  that 
way.  for  he  went  on.— 

"  "Well,  what  I  wished  to  say  was  this :  That,  had  your 
senses  not  been  dulled  by  the  fumes  of  that  pipe,  you  would 
have  seen  that  cow  in  time  to  have  frightened  her  away,  and 
thus  saved  all  this  honey  your  wife  has  thought  so  much  of.'* 

Friend  M.  here  stopped  abruptly,  and  began  feeling  in  his 
pockets,  first  one  and  then  the  other.  Finally  he  stood  up  and 
began  fumbling  in  his  coat-tail  pockets.  At  this  crisis  of  the 
proceeding,  old  Dobbin  evidently  thought  they  had  talked  long 
enough,  at  least  on  one  subject;  and,  deciding  that  further 
forbearance  had  ceased  to  be  a  virtue,  with  sudden  vehemence 
made  a  vigorous  push  to  go  on.  The  effect  was.  in  spite  of 
Mrs.  M.'a  efforts  to  the  contrary,  to  throw  our  rotund  friend 
violently  backward.  In  his  efforts  to  save  himself  he  stuck 
out  his  feet,  but,  alas  !  they  did  not  quite  reach  the  dash-board, 
and  by  the  time  he  was  fairly  on  his  back  on  the  seat,  his  feet 
stuck  straight  up  in  the  air.     His  feet  and  ankles,  although 


7S  MEERYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

without  ciuestion  highly  useful  to  himself  at  least,  were  so  far 
from  being  ornamental,  that,  in  spite  of  the  evident  danger, 
the  children  burst  out  laughing ;  and  as  his  good  wife,  while 
she  held  old  Dobbin  with  one  hand,  took  the  other  and  pushed 
the  aforesaid  feet  and  ankles  down  into  their  proper  position 
(thus  bringing  him  straight  up  on  the  seat),  the  rest  joined 
heartily  in  the  laugh  also.  Even  John's  mother  laughed 
through  her  tears  at  his  queer,  surprised  look,  until  she  almost 
cried  again ;  and  then,  when  friend  M.  joined  in,  the  rest 
took  another  start,  until  old  Dobbin  looked  around  to  see  if 
it  were  really  true  that  everybody  had  gone  crazy,  when  there 
was  <■<  rtainly  nothing  to  laugh  at,  at  all.  Honest  old  Dobbin 
had  his  views  of  the  fitness  of  things  as  well  as  other  people  ; 
and  the  oats  at  home,  that  he  would  have  had  long  before 
this,  were  to  him  more  sensible  and  substantial  than  any  thing 
that  all  this  talk  amounted  to.  If  the  truth  were  told,  he  had 
played  a  more  important  part  in  the  morning's  proceedings 
than  any  one  there  was  perhaps  aware  of,  except  John's  fa- 
ther ;  for  at  the  disputation  about  this  tobacco,  he  had  be- 
gun to  be  violently  angry.  After  the  laugh,  however,  he- 
so  far  forgot  it  that  he  was  the  first  one  to  ask  for  that 
wonderful  something  that  was  to  come  out  of  the  coat-tail 
pocket. 

••  Why,''  said  friend  M.,  '•  here  it  is.  It  is  a  little  pamphlet- 
sold  for  M  cts.,  by  Health  Reformer,  Battle  Creek,  Mich., 
that  I  wish  to  read  from.'1  Bidding  Dobbin  be  quiet,  he  ad- 
justed his  specs  and  read  as  follows  :— 

TOBACCO-USING   PROMO fES   CHEERFULNESS. 

Tobacco  stupefies,  intoxicates,  narcotizes;  if  this  is  cheerfulness,  then 
we  may  indorse  the  lines  of  the  poetic  lover  of  the  article,  who  sang: 

Sublime  tobacco,  which  from  East  to  West, 
Cheer*  the  tar's  labor  and  the  Turkman's  rest. 

Deprive  the  tobacco-chewer  of  his  quid,  or  the  smoker  of  his  idolized 
pipe,  and  mark  how  suddenly  his  cheerfulness  disappears.  How  sud- 
denly he  awakes  to  all  the  perplexities  and  irritations  of  life,  like  a  per- 
son awakening'  from  sleep. 


MEHRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  73 

The  drunkard  feels  happy  while  sipping  his  bowl  of  steaming-  sling; 
but  how  does  he  feel  next  morning  after  a  "spree'*  ?  A  more  wretched 
creature  is  scarcely  imaginable.  The  tobacco-user  does  not  find  his  real 
status  so  often,  because  he  ia  drunk  all  the  time,  and  thus  mistakes  his 
comfortable  feeling  for  cheerfulness— a  very  low  grade  of  eujoyment. 

IT   IS   THE   POOR   MAN'S   ONLY   LUXURY. 

Would-be  philanthropists  put  in  the  plea  for  tobacco  that  it  is  the  only 
luxury  which  poverty  allows  the  poor  laborer  who  toils  for  a  daily  pit- 
tance. With  tobacco  he  feels  contented  with  his  lot.  To  him  it  is  food, 
raiment,  riches,  and  contentment,  for  it  renders  him  oblivious  to  the 
lack  of  any  and  all  of  them.  How  cruel,  then,  to  take  from  him  such  a 
boon  ! 

Suppose  all  men  were  rendered  thus  stupid  and  insensible,  incapable 
of  aspiring  to  any  condition  higher,  nobler,  or  better  than  that  in  which 
circumstances  placed  them.  How  soon  would  complete  stagnation  en- 
sue !  How  soon  would  all  progress  cease  !  and  how  quickly  would  the 
world  relapse  into  the  barbarism  of  the  Middle  Ages  ! 

As  he  got  to  the  end.  Dobbin  shook  his  head  and  made  such 
a  vigorous  effort  to  go  on.  that  it  was  hard  to  keep  him  still; 
but  Mrs.  M.,  to  everybody's  surprise,  declared  that  she  had 
a  word  to  say. 

%i  By  all  means,  let  us  hear  it,'*  said  they  all. 

"It  is  just  this.  I  fear  my  husband  has  given  you  the  im- 
pression that  we  never  have  any  accidents  in  our  home,  and 
that  all  he  does  is  always  all  right,  and  that  he  never  does  any 
careless  or  thoughtless  things.  Husband,  will  you  please  tell 
them  about  that  nice  case  of  sections  you  had  picked  out 
with  so  much  pains,  to  take  to  the  fair  ?  n 

••There  were  4^  sections,  and  they  weighed  38  lbs.;'*  and 
he  stopped  there,  with  a  sort  of  sly  twinkle  in  his  eye. 

••But  you  want  to  be  honest,  now.  and  go  on  and  tell  the 
rest." 

1,1  Well,  they  were  very  nice  and  straight  and  true  and  white 
and  perfect."  * 

,l  Yes.  but  go  on  and  tell  it  all." 

"I  didn't  get  the  first  premium." 


80  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

''Now,  that  isn't  frank  and  honest.      Tell  them  why  \o\\ 
did  not  take  the  premium." 
"  I  concluded  not  to  take  them  to  the  fair." 
"Now,  look  here ;  if  you  do  not  tell  it  straight,  I  will." 
"  Well,  the  cover  got  left  off,  and  the  bees  got  in." 
"  You  mean,  that  you  left  the  cover  off  yourself,  and—" 
"  Well,  haven't  we  got  all  the  honey  in  the  hives  ?  " 
Dobbin  here  concluded  the  rest  might  do  as  they  chose,  but 
that  he  was  going  home ;  and  off  he  went,  and  nobody  stopped 
him  this  time. 

John's  mother  felt  sad  during  the  day ;   but  under  it  all 
seemed  to  be  a  bright  something— something  like  a  promise 
that  made  her  light  at  times,  in  spite  of  herself.     Toward 
night,  a  neighbor  brought  her  a  new  bright  half-dollar  for 
some  washing  she  had  done ;  and  as  she  had  been  wondering 
how  they  should  get  the  means  to  purchase  some  butter  need- 
ed daring  the  Sabbath,  she  gave  her  husband  the  plate,  and 
asked  him  to  get  it  for  her  at  the  grocery.     A  crowd  was 
lounging  about  as  usual  Saturday  night,  and  he.  instead  of 
doing  his  errand  and  passing  on,  stopped  to  hear  what  they 
were  saying.    The  talk  seemed  to  be  on  the  amount  of  beer  a 
man  might  drink  at  one  time.     The  keeper  of  the  grocery- 
store  was  evidently  quite  an  interested  listener,  for  the  subject 
seemed  to  promise  to  him  the  sale  of  quite  a  lot  of  beer.    The 
doctor  said   he  could  drink  three  glasses  without  trouble. 
The  shoemaker  said  he  would  drink  four  if  any  one  would 
pay  for  it. 
"  Suppose  you  fail,"  said  one.'' 
11  Then  I  will  pay  for  it  myself." 
';  And  drinks  for  the  crowd  ?  "  said  another. 
The  talk  then  went  on,  and  banter  after  banter  followed  un- 
til the  doctor  said  he  would  drink  eight  glasses  if  any  one 
would  pay  for  it,  and  drinks  for  the  crowd.    As  is  usual,  no 
one  of  those  present  had  any  money  ;  but  one  of  them,  notic- 


MEKKYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  81 

ing  the  half-dollar  our  friend  had  in  his  fingers,  whispered, 
Ak  Take  him  up  !  he  knows  he  can't  do  it.    Why,  it  is  an  utter 
impossibility.    lie  won't  hurt  himself;  let's  see  the  fun." 

Poor,  weak  man  !  Thinking,  of  course,  there  was  no  chance 
of  losing  his  poor  wife's  hard  earnings,  he  was  coaxed  into  it, 
as  many  another  weak  man  has  been.  I  presume  he  had  for- 
gotten the  little  text  his  children  had  been  repeating  about 
being  coaxed  by  sinners. 

My  son,  if  sinners  entice  thee,  consent  thou  not.— Prov.  1: 19. 

The  doctor,  with  a  self-complacent  smile,  stepped  up  and 
said.— 

••Gentlemen,  here  is  to  your  health.  That  is  one  glass. 
And  that  is  another,"'  and  so  on  with  the  whole  eight.  The 
grocer  was  careful  to  set  out  only  what  beer  the  half-dollar 
would  pay  for.  I  am  glad  to  say,  to  the  credit  of  John's 
father,  that  he  did  not  drink  any.  What  should  he  do  ? 
How  could  he  ever  take  that  empty  plate,  and  go  home  facing 
that  mild,  patient,  blue-eyed  wife  of  his,  and  tell  her  he  had 
fooled  the  money  away  she  had  worked  so  hard  and  wearily 
for.  just  to  see  one  man  make  a  brute  of  himself  ? 

He  wisely  concluded  to  go  home  and  tell  his  wife  the  whole 
truth,  and  ask  her  to  have  faith  in  his  resolution  to  keep  en- 
tirely away  from  the  whole  lot  of  such  companions  in  the  fu- 
ture. Although  there  was  a  tear  in  her  eye,  she  told  him  to 
let  it  go  and  never  mind ;  that  if  it  resulted  in  his  holding- 
aloof  from  that  class  of  men,  it  was  probably  a  half-dollar 
well  spent.  Her  kindness  was  the  severest  blow  of  all.  He 
could  have  borne  scolding  and  fault-finding  far  better  than 
this  treatment.  To  use  one  of  his  own  expressions,  it  cut  him 
up  terribly.  He  thought  of  new  resolutions,  and  what  his 
friend  had  said  about  tobacco.  He  thought  how  self-denying 
his  wife  was,  and,  for  that  matter  his  whole  family,  and  of 
how  much  comfort  his  tobacco-money  would  procure  for  them 
ail.    -;Oh  if  I  could  only  break  off  !"  he  thought.     He  had 


83  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

tried  before.  In  fact,  he  had  made  many  resolutions,  hut 
none  had  ever  been  kept  very  long.  In  his  inmost  soul  he  felt 
that  it  would  be  folly  to  promise  any  more.  He  knew  it  was 
actions  that  were  needed,  not  words.  Where  did  his  wife  get 
her  new-found  strength  ?  Had  that  Bible  he  had  so  often 
seen  her  reading,  of  late,  any  thing  to  do  with  it  ?  He  knew 
its  teachings  were  right,  and  what  he  needed;  but  he  had  lit- 
tle faith  that  he  could  live  up  to  any  of  them.  Could  God 
have  any  patience  or  care  for  one  so  weakly  wicked  as  himself  ? 
He  went  and  sat  out  by  the  door.  For  once  in  the  world,  the 
thought  of  his  pipe  was  distasteful.  In  fact,  it  galled  him  to 
think  of  it.  Before  bedtime,  John  came  up  to  his  mother's 
side,  as  was  his  custom  ;  and  as  he  remembered  the  events  of 
the  day,  he  said, — 

"Don't  feel  bad  about  the  honey,  mother;  I  will  try  awful 
hard  to  get  some  work,  and  I  will  work  so  hard  they  will  all 
want  me ;  and  you  see  if  I  don't  pay  it  all  back  to  you.'" 

The  innocent,  childish  remark  cut  him  to  the  quick  again.  It 
seemed  to  occur  to  him  all  at  once,  that  God  had  put  into  the 
mouth  of  his  little  boy  the  very  words  he  wanted  spoken  to 
him.  He  moved  out  among  the  bee-hives,  and  sat  down  there. 
Even  the  hum  of  the  insects  toiling  inside  their  hives  seemed 
a  reproof  to  him.  It  seemed  plain  to  him  now  why  he  had  not 
been  sought  after  when  hands  were  wanted.  He  was  not  a 
profitable  hand.  His  whole  end  and  purpose  had  not  been  to 
serve  his  employer  and  get  the  work  along,  but  rather  to  have 
the  hours  pass  until  quitting  time.  His  own  work,  even,  was 
neglected  and  undone.  Something  seemed  to  say  to  him  that 
people  could  hardly  expect  him  to  work  faithfully  for  them 
when  he  was  too  lazy  to  do  his  own  work.  His  whole  life 
seemed  stretching  out  before  him.  The  thought  of  it  and  the 
sight  of  it  galled  him  until  he  could  bear  it  no  longer.  Down 
on  his  knees  he  knelt  alone  in  the  night.  It  was  not  much  of 
a  prayer;  but  the  words,  "  God  have  mercy  on  me  a  sinner, 


MEKKYDANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  83 

and  help  me  to  be  a  better  man.'"  were  carried  above,  and 
recorded  in  the  Book  of  Life. 

The  minute  he  rose  to  his  feet,  a  fear  seized  him  that  this 
would  pass  away,  like  other  resolutions,  and  this  caused  a 
desire  to  spring  up  that  he  might  have  something  given  him 
to  do,  at  once,  right  there  in  the  night.  God  heard  the 
thought,*  and  as  quick  as  a  flash  his  scanty  woodpile  rose  up 
before  him.  Straight  to  it  he  went  at  once,  and  before  10 
o'clock  that  Saturday  night  every  stick  was  cut  up  into  nice 
stove-lengths,  even  including  the  hard  sticks  that  John  had 
chopped  at  in  vain,  and  tried  to  split  for  a  year  back.  After 
that  the  yard  was  raked  clean  and  smooth,  a  great  portion  of 
the  wood  carried  in.  and  the  rest  piled  up  nicely  for  the  Sab- 
bath. His  wife  supposed  it  was  done  because  he  felt  so  much 
ashamed  at  the  loss  of  the  half-dollar,  and  of  course  she  felt 
happy  to  see  him  show  his  penitence  in  such  a  practical  way. 
I  need  hardly  tell  you  he  was  happy,  as  well  as  tired ;  but  he 
said  very  little,  for  the  new  guiding  spirit  seemed  to  say, 
"  Let  actions  speak,  rather  than  words."' 

Sunday  morning  he  was  up  before  sunrise,  and,  instead  of 
the  morning  pipe,  he  proceeded  at  once  to  make  himself  as 
clean  as  possible.  As  he  did  not  forget  to  include  his  to- 
bacco-stained mouth  in  the  general  scrubbing,  it  took  the  best 
part  of  an  hour.  Such  clothes  as  he  had  were  scrupulously 
clean;  and  after  he  had  them  on,  ready  for  church,  he  really 
looked  fit  to  be  kissed,  not  only  by  little  Mary,  but  by  his 
wife,  too,  even  though  the  recollection  of  yesterday  was  still 
fresh  in  the  minds  of  both.  I  tell  you,  a  nice  clean  papa,  clean 
in  body,  soul,  mind,  and  spirit,  is  seldom  unappreciated  by 
any  child.  Well,  our  friend,  while  resolving  that  the  Sabbath 
was  to  be  a  day  of  rest  from  the  labors  of  the  week,  felt 
that  God  did  not  intend  that  it  should  be  a  day  of  idleness 

*And  it  shall  come  to  pass,  that  before  they  call.  I  will  answer:  and 
while  they  are  yet  speaking.  I  will  hear.— ISA.  65:24. 


84  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

for  him,  at  any  rate.  He  bsgan  looking  about  the  house  for 
some  lesson-helps  for  the  coming  Sabbath-school ;  but  as  all 
they  had  in  the  house  were  for  juveniles,  his  wife  suggested 
that  he  might  go  over  to  friend  Merrybanks'  for  something 
that  would  prepare  him  better  for  the  Bible-class.  She  seemed 
instinctively  to  feel  that  his  present  longing  for  something  to 
do  was  the  promptings  of  the  voice  of  God.  As  he  made 
known  his  request  with  a  happy,  good-natured  smile  on  his 
face,  friend  M.  could  not  help  thinking,  "  Except  ye  become 
as  little  children,  ye  cannot  enter  the  kingdom  of  heaven." 
With  his  wife's  little  Bible,  and  the  paper  that  had  been 
loaned  him,  he  was  so  busily  engaged  he  hardly  thought  of 
breakfast  at  all  until  summoned  by  a  hand  laid  lovingly  on  his 
head.  Fresh  eggs,  with  mealy  potatoes,  soft  light  bread,  and, 
as  sure  as  you  live,  a  plate  of  nice  yellow  butter.  Did  God 
send  that  too  V  Across  the  table,  up  on  the  mantel,  in  plain 
sight,  lay  that  old  pipe. 

And  the  Lord  God  formed  man  of  the  dust  of  the  ground,  and 
breathed  into  his  nostrils  the  breath  of  life;  and  man  became  a  living- 
soul.— Genesis  2:7. 

Truly  was  he  made  of  "  the  dust  of  the  ground ; "  but  since 
the  moment  he  had  knelt  out  in  the  darkness  the  night  be- 
fore, God  had  been  breathing  into  his  soul  "the  breath 
of  life." 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

Not  slothful  in  business;  fervent  in  spirit;  serving-  the  Lord.— Rom.. 
12:11. 

JOHN'S  father  thought  he  had  never  before  in  his  life  tasted 
any  butter  like  that  he  found  on  the  table  that  Sunday 
morning.     It  was  because  God  sent  it,  and  the  things 
that  God  sends  are  not  to  be  compared  with  the  things  in  this 
world.     Perhaps  some  of  my  readers  may  prefer  to  have  me 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  85 

state  it  in  a  different  way.  Well,  one  reason  why  he  thought 
the  butter  was  so  very  nice,  was  that  he  had  been  doing  his 
duty,  not  only  in  using  the  Sabbath  morning  in  a  way  he  knew 
to  be  right,  but  that,  when  he  sat  down  to  the  table,  instead 
of  pitching  in  and  helping  himself  to  the  best  of  every  thing, 
lie  waited  on  each  of  the  children,  and  even  passed  to  his  wife 
the  things  she  could  not  reach  readily.  When  he  saw  that 
they  were  all  lacking  nothing,  he  helped  himself.  Also, 
the  plate  of  butter  was  brought  over  by  Freddie  Merrybanks 
the  evening  before,  saying  his  mother  wished  them  to  try 
a  sample  of  the  butter  made  from  the  fine  Jersey  cow  that 
they  had  just  purchased.  Simple  enough,  was  it  not  ?  Well, 
John's  father  thought  God  sent  it,  and  I  entirely  agree  with 
him;  but  you,  my  friend,  may  think  otherwise  if  you  wish, 
and  we  will  not  feel  hard  toward  you,  either.  If  you  wish  to 
have  the  butter  good,  try  passing  it  to  everybody  else  before 
you  take  any.  and  I  assure  you  it  will  improve  it  amazingly, 
even  if  it  be  not  made  from  a  Jersey  cow.  John's  father  had 
just  decided  to  follow  Jesus,  and  so  he  "  pleased  not  himself ;  " 
but  I  do  not  believe  he  knew  where  in  the  Bible  it  read  so. 
Do  you  ? 

The  whole  family  went  to  church,  and  as  it  wras  but  a  little 
way  they  went  easily  on  foot.  Our  friend  was  a  good  deal  in- 
terested in  the  sermon,  but  as  there  was  not  very  much  in  it 
that  applied  directly  to  those  just  taking  a  start  in  the  new 
wray,  he  did  not  enjoy  it  as  much  as  he  did  the  Bible-class, 
where  he  could  ask  questions.  His  questions  were  of  such  a 
strange,  out-of-the  way  kind,  that  he  not  only  puzzled  the 
teacher,  who  was  the  pastor  of  the  church,  but  called  the  at- 
tention of  many  curious  eyes  toward  him.  I  will  give  just  one 
for  a  sample., 
"  Can  a  man  be  a  Christian,  who  does  not  pay  his  debts  ?  *" 
It  may  be  that  it  was  the  money  he  owed  for  that  horse 
that  lay  heavily  on  his  conscience ;  but  be  that  as  it  may.  it 


86  MEKKYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

convinced  the  good  pastor  that  his  pupil  was  really  in  ear- 
nest, and  it  stirred  him  to  unusual  life  and  zeal,  not  only  in 
the  answer  to  that  question,  but  through  the  whole  lesson. 
With  an  inward  prayer  to  God,  that  at  least  one  seemed  to  be 
inquiring  the  way,  he  raised  his  spectacles,  and,  with  a  kindly 
smile  beaming  on  his  face,  he  replied  to  his  questioner,— 

"  Really,  friend  Jones,  I  am  not  sure  that  questions  of  this 
kind  admit  of  being  answered  by  a  simple  yes  or  no.  Had  you 
asked  if  a  man  could  be  a  Christian,  who  did  not  mean  or 
propose  to  pay  his  debts,  it  would  have  been  somewhat  differ- 
ent, for  all  mankind  would  then  answer  alike,  skeptics  as  well 
;is  Christians.  Now,  on  the  other  hand,  you  know  there  are 
those  who,  in  spite  of  all  they  can  do,  can  not  meet  their  just 
obligations ;  one  on  a  bed  of  sickness,  for  instance.  In  that 
case,  would  it  be  right  to  say  he  could  not  be  a  Christian  ?  " 

"  Well,  how  hard  ought  one  to  try  who  is  not  sick  ?  " 
•Why,  my  friend,  I  hardly  feel  competent  to  say;  but  I 
am  pretty  sure  the  harder  he  tries,  the  better  Christian  he  will 
be— the  more  will  he  feel  God's  approval.      You  know  the 
Bible  says, — 

"Thou  shalt  love  the  Lord  thy  God  with  all  thy  heart,  and  with  all  thy 
soul,  and  with  all  thy  strength,  and  with  all  thy  mind;  and  thy  neighbor 
as  thyself.— Luke  10:27. 

"  That  last  clause  seems  to  indicate  that  we  ought  to  try 
pretty  hard  before  deciding  we  can  not  give  our  neighbor  that 
which  is  justly  his  own,  should  we  not  V" 

"  Will  you  please  tell  me  where  that  text  is  ?  " 

The  teacher  smiled  at  his  almost  boyish  eagerness,  and 
said,— 

"Here;  hand  me  your  Bible,  and  I  will  mark  it  with  my 
pencil." 

"  It  was  his  wife's  little  Bible  that  he  handed  out,  and  as  he 
did  so  he  naturally  glanced  at  her.  There  was  a  tear  glistening 
in  her  eye,  but  with  it  was  a  look  that  told  to  him  what  others 


MERRY  BANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  *7 

could  not  see.  When  they  were  first  married,  she  had  an  eager 
longing  to  have  him  stand  well  with  the  best  people,  and  a 
true  wifely  pride  in  thinking  lie  was  a  man  among  men.  This 
hope,  as  it  were,  had  almost  died  out  through  the  idle  and 
shiftless  life  he  had  passed  ;  but  now  the  hope  had  sprung  up 
afresh  ;  and  through  the  thanksgiving  to  God  for  this  change 
that  seemed  coming,  there  was,  in  that  look,  as  she  saw  how 
pleased  and  animated  the  minister  had  seemed  in  this  little 
talk,  more  than  words  could  tell  to  her  husband.  He  saw  his 
wife's  hands,  worn  with  toil,  and  glanced  across  the  little 
church  to  where  John  and  Mary  were.  He  took  in  at  a  glance 
the  way  in  which  their  poor  clothing  contrasted  with  the  com- 
fortable though  plain  apparel  of  the  rest  of  the  congregation, 
and  it  seemed  to  him  that,  if  God  would  only  grant  the  same 
health  he  had  enjoyed  during  those  wasted  years,  he  would 
ask  no  greater  blessing.  What  a  dear  good  kind  man  was 
their  pastor  !  Why,  it  would  be  almost  heaven  upon  earth  to 
be  permitted  to  live  near  such  a  man,  and  to  help  him.  even 
only  the  little  that  he  might  do.  in  his  God-appointed  Avork  of 
saving  souls. 

On  the  way  home,  the  text — his  text,  was  running  constantly 
through  his  mind.  As  they  sat  down  to  dinner,  without 
thinking  he  read  it  again  from  the  little  Bible,  and,  as  a  shoit 
silence  ensued,  it  seemed  to  occur  to  all  that  this  was  their 
first  asking  of  God's  blessing,  before  partaking  of  their  food. 
It  seemed  just  then  to  the  father  that  it  would  be  a  pleasant, 
happy  thing  to  repeat  this  text,  or  something  like  it,  as  they 
gathered  around  the  table  before  every  meal. 

If  I  am  correct,  during  their  talks  and  plans  for  their  future 
during  that  Sabbath  afternoon,  there  mingled  in  some  plans 
and  suggestions  for  business.  The  horse  was  talked  about, 
and.  I  believe,  nicely  brushed  up,  and  fed.  I  do  not  know 
but  that  the  father,  as  well  as  John,  was  a  little  impatient  to 
commence  work.    In  the  evening  they  all  attended  a  temper- 


8S  MBRRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

ance  meeting  at  their  little  church.  Their  little  church.  The 
thought  came  up  to  the  lather,  that,  so  far  in  his  life,  he  had 
not  given  one  solitary  copper  to  the  support  of  it.  The  chil- 
dren had  taken  some  pennies  to  the  Sabbath-school,  but  no 
one  in  the  world  had  ever  seen  him  take  a  coin  out  of  his 
pocket  for  the  support  of  a  church  or  minister.  Just  now  he 
had  not  one  copper  in  his  pocket ;  but  before  another  Sunday 
came,  something  seemed  to  promise  there  would  be  some. 
Several  of  their  own  people  spoke  at  the  temperance  meeting ; 
but  our  friend  had  a  sort  of  feeling  that  he  would  prefer  to 
try  at  least  one  week  before  saying  any  thing  in  public  about 
what  he  was  going  to  do.  The  old  pipe  lay  on  the  mantel-piec? 
still,  and  it  had  not  been  touched  for  one  whole  day. 

"  John,  who  can  get  up  first  in  the  morning— you  or  I  ?  '" 

*•  Why,  father,  what  are  we  going  to  do  ?  " 

•■  AVe  are  going  to  put  our  cornfield  in  the  nicest  trim  of  any 
one's  in  the  neighborhood,  and  then  we  are  going  to  do  some- 
thing to  pay  for  old  Jack,  and  get  the  mortgage  from  off  our 
little  home. " 

"  Shall  I  call  you  as  soon  I  am  up  ?  *'  said  John,  with  a  slight 
twinkle  in  his  eye. 

John  was  up  by  sunrise,  or  a  little  before,  but  he  did  not  call 
his  father.  The  horse  was  up  and  hitched  to  the  cultivator, 
and  John  came  just  in  the  nick  of  time  to  go  on  with  the 
work.  Before  night  the  field  was  cultivated  twice  in  a  row 
both  ways,  and  hoed  so  nicely  that  scarely  a  weed  could  be 
found.  To  be  sure  no  weeds  in  between  the  stalks  were 
skipped,  the  old  dry  hard  earth  was  pulled  away,  and  fresh 
mellow  soil  put  around  in  its  place.  More  than  one  of  the 
neighbors  stopped  and  looked  at  the  field,  remarking,  "  Well, 
Mr.  Jones  has  done  a  nice  job  on  that  corn-field,  after  all." 
Several  times  during  the  day  there  were  opportunities  to  stop 
and  talk,  but  he  resisted  the  temptation,  and,  while  he  was 
courteous,  gave  them  to  understand  he  was  busy. 


MERRY0ANK8  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  *9 

At  one  side  of  his  lot,  near  the  house,  was  a  wet,  swampy 
place.  As  it  was  too  miry  to  be  of  any  use,  it  had  become  a 
sort  of  ••  catch-all"*  place  for  old  rubbish.  Old  boots  and 
shoes  ;  rusty,  worn-out  tea-kettles,  oyster-cans,  feathers,  bro- 
ken crockery,  empty  boxes,  etc.,  had  been  thrown  promis- 
cuously into  this  place,  and,  as  it  was  a  handy  place,  slops 
and  soapsuds  had  also  been  thrown  there.  The  ducks  and 
chickens,  finding  the  rank  foul  weeds  a  sort  of  shady  place, 
had  also  passed  a  great  deal  of  their  time  there,  until  the 
stench  of  the  place  had  somehow  led  everybody  to  avoid  it.  As 
it  was  next  to  the  street,  it  added  very  much  to  the  untidiness 
and  uninviting  appearance  of  the  place.  John's  mother  had 
often  asked  if  a  ditch  could  not  be  so  dug  as  to  let  off  the 
wetness,  but  it  had  never  been  done.  Right  near  the  spot 
was  a  low  place  in  the  road,  and  a  small  bridge  had  been  built 
over  it  to  take  the  water,  that  seemed,  winter  and  summer,  to 
be  oozing  out  of  this  miry  place.  It  was  the  middle  of  the  aft- 
ernoon when  the  corn  was  finished,  and  he  felt  a  terrible  long- 
ing to  sit  down  with  his  pipe:  but  with  a  prayer  to  God  for 
help,  he  told  John,  after  he  had  rested  awhile,  he  might  help 
him  down  by  the  bridge. 

••Why.  father,  what    are  you  going  to  do  down  by  the 
bridge  V  " 
••  When  you  come  down,  I  will  tell  you."" 
••  Why,  I'm  not  much  tired  :  I  guess  I  will  go  now.'" 
A  small  pool  of  water  lay  under  the  bridge,  but  Mr.  Jones 
found  it  was  mostly  owing  to  a  great  growth  of  peppermint, 
just  below,  on  which  the  bees  were  just  then  busily  at  work. 
With  hoe  and  shovel  and  spade  he  soon  let  this  water  off  with- 
out interfering  with  much  of  the  peppermint  either.     Then 
he  went  above  the  bridge  and  cleaned  out  the  channel  clear 
up  to  his  own  fence.    After  getting  out  the  gravel  and  mud, 
he  found  a  soft  rock  that  he  could  cut  pretty  easily  with  his 
pick  and  spade.     John  brought  his  kite-string,  and  it  was 


90  MEKKVBANKS    ANDHIS  NEIGHBOK. 

stretched  from  the  fence,  right  up  through  the  wettest  part  of 
that  unsightly  slop-hole.  After  the  rock  was  laid  bare,  a 
channel  the  width  of  the  spade  was  cut  into  it,  deep  enough 
to  take  all  the  water,  and  over  this  were  placed  short  pine 
boards,  made  by  cutting  up  old  dry-goods  boxes  found  about 
the  premises.  The  boards  were  laid  crosswise  on  the  rock,  so 
as  to  support  the  dirt  more  effectually.  Mary  and  Freddie 
were  there  by  the  time  the  work  was  well  started,  and  Freddie 
suggested  they  should  hunt  flat  stones,  so  as  to  make  the  cov- 
ering as  durable  as  the  sides. 

"Yes,"  said  John,  "and  we  can  take  that  tinware  and 
pound  it  down  flat  and  use  that/* 

"Why,"  said  Freddie,  ••  my  pa  has  a  pair  of  shears  to  cut 
tin,  and  I  know  he  will  let  us  have  them  so  we  can  cut  the  tin 
up  and  make  it  go  a  great  deal  further." 

Mary  here  chimed  in,  "And  I  can  hunt  up  all  the  old  tin 
pails  and  basins  and  wash-boilers,  and  get  them  out  of  sight 
and  make  them  do  good.'" 

The  shears  were  brought,  and  some  other  children,  hearing 
that  old  tinware  was  wanted,  brought  such  a  lot  that  there 
was  a  fair  prospect  of  having  a  whole  metal  covering  for  the 
whole  drain.  John  soon  found  he  could  cut  tin  quite  expertly, 
and  began  to  think  a  great  deal  of  the  tinners'  shears.  So  in- 
terested did  they  become  in  the  work,  that  Mr.  Jones,  almost 
for  the  first  time  in  years,  felt  sorry  that  it  was  too  dark  to 
work  longer.  He  felt  tired,  and  his  muscles  were  somewhat 
sore  after  his  severe  day's  work,  but  he  was  happy.  His  text 
had  been  with  him  all  day  long,  and  there  was  a  sort  of  feel- 
ing in  his  heart  that  a  great,  great  Friend,  somewhere  in  the 
universe,  was  saying,  Well  done.  Before  going  to  his  rest  he 
went  out  by  the  bee-hives  again  and  thanked  God  for  the 
great  new  happiness  that  was  coming  into  his  life.  He  was 
asleep  almost  as  soon  as  he  touched  the  pillow.  His  wife 
retired  a  little  later,  and  noted  that  even  on  his  face  when 


MERRVBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  91 

asleep,  there  was  a  hopefulness  and  peace  she  had  never  seen 
before.    It  was  because  God  was  leading  and  he  was  following. 

Before  night  of  the  next  day  they  had  got  up  into  the  worst 
part  of  the  slop-hole.  John  suggested  using  the  old  boots  for 
a  covering,  to  get  them  out  of  sight,  as  well  as  the  broken 
crockery  and  tinware ;  but  friend  Merrybanks,  who  was  a 
much-interested  spectator,  said  there  was  a  better  place  for 
old  boots,  shoes,  bones,  feathers,  etc.,  and  all  kinds  of  animal 
matter,  and  so  they  were  carried  to  the  manure  or  compost 
heap,  near  the  stable.  The  surface  of  the  rock  was  here  more 
uneven,  and  finally,  all  at  once  the  water  spouted  right  out  of 
one  side  of  this  ditch.  It  poured  out  into  the  stone  channel, 
and  made  a  gurgling  merry  brook  as  it  went  down  under  the 
bridge.  John's  father  dug  out  a  little  where  the  water  seemed 
to  come  from,  and  found  a  basin  of  clear  white  sand,  after  the 
mud  had  washed  away,  and  through  this  sand  the  water  bub- 
bled and  boiled,  as  if  it  were  water  boiling  in  a  kettle. 

"  A  spring  !  a  spring  !  "  came  from  all  hands,  and  every  one 
had  to  rush  up  in  spite  of  the  mud  and  stench  from  the  place, 
to  see  this  wonderful  spring.    Friend  M.  spoke, — 

k*Look  here,  neighbor  !  I  have  got  an  oil-barrel,  with  both 
heads  out,  that  I  think  we  can  fix  right  over  this.*' 

kWBut  it  will  taste  of  the  oil,'"  said  John. 

•'No,  for  we  will  burn  the  barrel  with  shavings  until  it  is 
charred.  This  will  take  off  the  taste  and  smell,  and  also  pre- 
vent it  from  rotting." 

The  barrel  was  fixed,  and,  after  charring,  the  hoops  were 
driven  tight,  and  nailed.  After  setting  it  over  the  spring,  some 
tough  clay  was  found  and  spread  around  the  inside,  and  the 
same  kind  of  clay  tamped  solid  around  the  outside.  While 
doing  this,  a  small  passage  into  the  stone  drain  was  left  for 
the  water.  Before  stopping  this  and  making  the  barrel  fill 
with  water,  some  provision  was  to  be  made  for  the  overflow. 
Friend  M.  said  he  had  a  tin  eave-spout  that  he  thought  would 


92  MERKYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

just  reach  down  to  the  road  by  the  bridge.  While  John  is 
despatched  to  bring  it,  I  shall  have  to  explain  that  he  had. 
some  time  before  this,  built  a  sort  of*  playhouse  for  Mary,  in 
a  corner  of  the  lot.  near  the  bridge.  The  roof  was  simply  some 
boards  laid  over,  and  the  angle  in  the  fence  formed  two  sides. 
Well,  the  tin  pipe,  when  put  in  place,  came  out  just  in  front 
of  the  playhouse.  It  chanced  to  be  of  just  about  the  size 
needed  to  drive  into  the  bunghole  of  the  barrel,  and  this 
brought  it  under  ground  enough  to  be  out  of  the  way  for  plow- 
ing. After  all  was  fixed,  and  the  pipe  covered  op,  a  ball  of 
stiff  clay  was  forced  into  the  channel  where  the  water  ran 
into  the  drain,  and  all  watched  breathlessly  to  see  if  the  clay 
was  impervious  enough  to  confine  the  water.  The  water  did 
not  stop  in  the  drain,  it  is  true;  but  this  indicated  that  the 
water  was  coming  out  of  the  wet,  springy  ground,  for  the 
barrel  was  slowly  filling  up.  Very  soon  it  was  up  to  the  tin 
pipe,  and  as  the  tin  was  nicely  turned  over  and  tacked  to  the 
inside  of  the  barrel,  the  spring  was  soon  all  flowing  out  through 
the  pipe,  and  pouring  in  a  little  waterfall  among  the  gravelly 
pebbles  down  by  the  bridge,  right  in  front  of  the  playhouse. 
John,  in  anticipation  of  the  moment  it  would  come,  had  one 
of  his  old  water-wheels  supported  on  a  couple  of  forked  sticks, 
and  in  k'  no  time  "  the  wheel  was  spinning  like  a  thing  of  life, 
and  spattering  the  cool  spring  water  in  a  most  refreshing  way 
on  that  hot  summer  afternoon.  At  this  point  Uncle  Billy 
drove  along. 

w'  Why,  neighbor  Jones,  have  you  really  found  such  a  nice 
spring  in  that  wet,  nasty  place  ?  " 

•'  So  it  would  seem,"'  said  John's  father,  pleasantly,  al- 
though he  remembered  vividly  about  the  cow  and  the  honey. 

"  Well,  now,  we  have  just  been  talking  of  a  trough  down  in 
the  woods  that  would  fit  this  place  exactly;  and  if  you  wisli 
to  allow  this  water  to  be  used  as  a  public  watering-place,  the 


MERKY1ANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  93 

trough  is  at  your  service,  and  my  men  will  bring  it  over  this 
afternoon." 

Mr.  Jones  was  surprised.  In  fact,  all  were  a  little  surprised. 
Freddie  ventured.— 

••  Why.  are  you  going  to  lix  it  so  everybody  can  just  drive 
right  up  here  and  let  their  horses  get  a  drink  whenever  they 
want  it?" 

"  That  is  the  idea  exactly,  my  man,""  said  Uncle  Billy.  Thus 
encouraged,  Mary  looked  up  into  the  rich  farmer's  face  and 
ventured. — 

••  Hadn't  you  ought  to  bring  a  little  trough,  so  the  dogs  can 
drink  too  ?  *"  Her  father  chided  her  gently  for  her  presump- 
tion, but  she  had  read  Uncle  Billy  better  than  he,  for  the 
reply  came.— 

"  Yes,  my  girl,  we  will  bring  a  little  trough  for  the  dogs  to 
drink  out  of.  so  they  won't  go  mad  in  a  dry  time,  and  you  are 
to  take  care  of  it.  and  keep  it  nice  and  clean." 

The  trough  came,  with  a  little  one  attached  to  one  end.  A 
hole  was  bored  in  the  end  of  the  large  trough,  with  a  hollow 
plug  in  it,  and  through  this  hollow  plug  the  water  fell  into  the 
little  trough  below.  That  the  trough  might  not  get  pushed 
about  and  injured,  the  men  brought  a  couple  of  solid  posts, 
and  before  they  went  away  the  whole  was  most  thoroughly 
stayed  with  spikes,  and  additionally  braced  to  the  posts  of  the 
fence.  It  did  not  take  John  very  long  to  fix  the  water-wheel 
right  over  the  dogs'  trough  ;  and.  almost  before  they  knew  it, 
half  of  the  little  village  had  gathered  about  Mr.  Jones's  new 
spring.  By  some  unknown  means  the  minister  came  too ;  and, 
after  shaking  Uncle  Billy  cordially  by  the  hand,  and  thanking 
him  for  his  assistance  in  the  matter,  he  found  a  clean,  white 
shingle,  which  he  tacked  to  the  fence,  and  with  a  piece  of  coal 
wrote  on  it  as  follows  : — 

Ho!  even;  one  that  thirsteth, 
Come  ye  to  the  waters,  and  drink. 


94 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 


Of  course,  everybody  had  to  look  down  in  that  black  barrel, 
and  see  the  white  sand  bubbling  and  boiling  in  the  clear 
spring  water;  but  through  it  all.  Mr.  Jones  was  still  busily  at 
work.  The  drain  in  the  rock,  with  the  flat  stones  laid  over  it, 
and  the  cut-up  tinware  laid  nicely  over  them,  was  not  yet  filled 
up.  He  was  just  now  cutting  down  the  tall  rank  weeds,  and 
stamping  them  in  the  drain,  before  throwing  on  the  dirt. 
Even  late  as  it  was  in  the  season,  he  had  a  plan  of  raising  a 
crop  there  before  winter,  and  he  was  in  haste  to  get  the 
ground  dry  and  ready  to  plow.  I  think  I  shall  have  to  give 
you  a  picture  of — 


THE   WATERING-TROUGH   BY   THE  BRIDGE. 

After  seeing  the  minister  mark  on  a  shingle  with  a  piece  of 
coal,  John  thought  he  would  try  his  hand  at  it,  and  you  will 
see  a  sample  of  his  work  up  over  the  play-house.  On  the  post 
by  the  trough  you  will  see  a  tin  cup  hanging.  Well,  this  tin 
cup  has  a  pleasant  history,  and,  unless  I  am  very  much  mis- 
taken, it  (the  history,  not  the  cup)  contains  something  helpful 
to  more  than  one  of  my  readers.     It  is  too  dark  to  work,  and 


MEKRYBANKS  AND  HIS  XEIGiiliOlt.  65 

all  the  family,  except  John,  are  sitting  on  the  log  that  goes 
across  the  bridge,  listening  to  the  ripple  of  the  water  as  it  falls 
from  the  water-wheel. 

The  ground  was  pebbly  and  sandy  near  where  the  water 
flowed  out  of  the  small  trough,  so  there  was  little  danger  of  its 
becoming  muddy  ;  but  back,  further  up  the  bank,  there  was  a 
spot  of  clay.  As  there  were  a  great  many  stones  in  their  gar- 
den and  corn-field,  Mr.  Jones  was  speaking  about  having  them 
all  gathered  up  and  put  around  the  watering-trough,  that  it 
might  not  get  muddy  for  the  horses  as  they  came  up  to  drink. 
While  he  was  planning  how  he  would  make  a  stone-boat  for 
drawing  the  stone,  both  from  the  adjoining  roadsides  as  well 
as  from  the  garden,  John  came  running  up,  saying, — 

"O  father,  father!  the  bees  are  actually  building  comb 
again  in  the  boxes.  I  thought  they  were  gathering  honey  in 
the  pail  bee-hive,  and  so  I  went  and  looked  in  tliem  outdoors, 
and  the  boxes  are  full  of  bees,  and  you  can  see  the  white 
comb  where  it  sticks  out  of  the  cluster.  They  are  just  more 
than  scrabbling  around  and  working." 

"  Scrabbling  V ■''  said  his  mother. 

■■  Well,  youJu"st  come  and  see  if  they  don't  '  scrabble." "' 

41  It  must  be  from  the  peppermint,"'  said  his  father. 

k-  Father,"  said  Mary,  ll  you  do  not  think  Uncle  Billy  is  an 
-  old  curmudgeon '  now,  do  you  ?  ** 

"Xo,  my  child,  and  I  was  very  wrong  and  wicked  to  have 
spoken  so  of  any  of  my  neighbors."  The  next  sentence  was 
spoken  more  to  his  wife.  tk  Can  it  be  possible  that  this  is  the 
same  world,  and  the  same  people  that  I  knew  only  last  week  V 
Is  it  really  possible  the  change  is  in  my  poor  self,  and  no- 
where else  ?'• 


MERRYRANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 


err  after  xxiv 


Fear  not,  little  Hock;  for  it  is  the  Fathers  good  pleasure  to  give  you 
the  kingdom  — Lukk  12:22. 

THE  new  watering-trough  was  patronized  amazingly.  John 
had  rigged  up  a  sort  of  work-bench,  down  in  that  play- 
house that  he  styled  his  Temperance  Hotel,  and  he  en- 
joyed so  much  seeing  the  horses  drink,  as 
they  came,  a  little  shyly  at  first,  up  to  the 
new  trough,  that  he  actually  dreamed  of  see- 
ing horses  drinking  at  night  after  he  had  got 
to  bed.  The  water,  bubbling  as  it  did  right 
out  of  the  sandy  rock,  was  always  fresh, 
soft,  and  cool,  and  no  horse  ever  refused  to 
drink  there,  even  if  he  had  been  watered 
but  a  half-hour  before  out  of  some  muddy, 
stagnant  pool.  The  tinner's  shears  had  not 
yet  been  carried  home,  and  John  had  be- 
come quite  expert  with  them,  fashioning  things  out  of  the  tin 
he  got  out  of  some  oyster-cans  that  had  been  so  recently  emp- 
tied they  were  comparatively  clean  and  bright.  In  fact,  he 
made  the  tin  cup  I  promised  to  tell  you  about  in  the  last  chap- 
ter, and  he  became  so  fond  of  the  business,  the  passers-by 
joked  him  by  saying  he  had  better  put  his  sign,  ''Temper- 
ance Tin-Shop,"  rather  than  l-  Hotel."  Shall  I  tell  you 
how  he  made  nice-looking  cups  out  of  oyster-cans  ?  Well,  he 
just  cut  them  open  near  the  seams,  so  as  to  get  a  piece  of  tin 
3  by  12i  inches.  One  oyster-can  made  just  two  such  piects. 
After  the  tin  was  nicely  flattened  by  a  little  wooden  mallet, 
he  marked  it  out  accurately  with  his  father's  square,  and  then 
cut  it  exactly  on  the  line  with  his  snips.  After  this  he  snipped 
off  every  one  of  the  four  corners  until  his  tin  looked  about 
like  this : — 


■JOHN  s  dream. 


MERRYRANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 


ft" 


:  ii     '     '  ■  '  i    !      I'1  i         11 

Xext,  he  folded  an  edge  on  each  of  the  long  sides,  win  re  you 
see  the  dotted  lines.  He  did  this  by  laying  it  on  the  square, 
with  the  edge  projecting  just  enough,  and  then  turned  it  down 
with  his  mallet.  lie  did  not  pound  this  seam  down  hard,  for 
he  wished  it  to  look  as  much  as  possible  as  if  a  wiw  weie 
turned  under  the  fold.  One  edge  was  turned  over  one  way, 
and  the  other  the  other.  Well,  after  this  was  done  he  folded 
it  around  his  mother's  potato-masher  by  means  of  his  ma'. let, 
so  it  looked  much  like  a  cup  without  handle  or  bottom.  The 
ends  were  slightly  curved  with  the  mallet  before  rolling  it  up, 
so  they  lay  on  each  other  nicely,  ready  to  solder.  The  clip- 
ping, as  you  see,  made  no  seams  or  folds  where  the  lap  came. 
Neighbor  Merrybanks  good-naturedly  loaned  him  his  solder- 
ing-iron, with  the  understanding  that  John  was  to  pay  for  all 
the  solder  he  used,  and  keep  the  iron  in  good  order.  You 
know  I  said  one  seam  was  turned  out  and  the  other  in.  Well, 
with  his  father's  compasses  a  true  circle  was  marked  out  on 
another  piece  of  tin,  and  when  made  just  the  right  size,  and 
cut  out,  it  just  pushed  into  the  cup.  It  would  go  into  the  t^p 
very  well,  and  when  pushed  down  to  the  bottom  it  came  solid- 
ly against  the  seam  that  was  turned  in  to  hold  it.  It  came 
down  into  place  so  securely  it  almost  seemed  as  if  it  would 
stay  without  solder.  However,  as  John's  cups  were  to  be  use- 
ful as  well  as  ornamental,  it  was  soldered  securely.  Mary  and 
Freddie  were  loud  in  their  praises  of  the  cup,  because  it  actu- 
ally did  not  leak  a  drop  all  the  while  they  were  eating  supper, 
yet  it  was  left  on  the  work-bench,  brim  full.  Freddie  said 
they  bought  a  tin  cup  of  a  peddler,  and  it  would  not  do  that. 


»a 


MEKKYBANKS  AND  HJS   NEIUHBOK. 


After  supper,  a  handle  was  made  oi'  a  piece  of  tin  that  was 
left.    The  handle,  when  cut,  looked  just  like  this:— 

After  he  got  a  cup  made  so  he 
knew  it  held  exactly  a  pint,  he 
made  a  careful  pattern  and 
punched  a  hole  through  it  so  it  could  be  hungup  on  a  nail, 
lie  also  wrote  on  every  pattern  the  name  of  it,  as  you  see  in 
the  pictures,  so  no  mistake  would  be  made.  The  edges  of  the 
handle  were  folded,  much  like  the  body  of  the  cup :  and.  to  get 
the  right  shape  to  it,  he  folded  it  over  his  mother's  rolling-pin. 
so  as  to  be  bent  exactly  like  a  cup  they  had  in  the  house. 
After  he  had  got  one  to  suit  him,  by  the  aid  of  the  patterns, 
it  did  not  take  very  long  to  make  another;  and.  at  the  sug- 
gestion of  Mary,  this  second  one  was  hung  on  a  nail  just  over 
his  bench,  with  a  little  board  under  it.  marked  just  as  you 
see  below : — 

rhisi  as  they  got  it  nicely  fixed.  Uncle  Hilly 
drove  past;  and,  seeing  the  children  looking 
up  at  the  cup  with  such  interest  and  anima- 
tion, he  glanced  up  too. 

k*  Only  5  cents  ?  Why.  I  guess  a  new  tin  cup 
is  just  what  I  want;"  and  he  took  a  nickel 
out  of  his  pocket  and  handed  it  over. 

••  John  made  it,  all  his  self,"  ventured  Mary,  for  the  success 
of  her  plea  for  the  little  trough  had  made  her  somewhat  bold. 

"  Is  that  so  V  Why.  where  did  he  get  his  tools  for  a  tin- 
shop  ?" 

John,  a  little  shyly,  told  him  they  were  there  on  the  bench. 
While  Uncle  Billy  was  looking  them  over  and  asking  questions. 
the  doctor  drove  up  with  his  boy  Tom.  Of  course,  all  had  to 
look  at  the  cup.  The  doctor  gave  an  order  for  half  a  dozen, 
explaining  that  he  preferred  it  to  any  he  could  buy.  because 
John  had  done  all  of  the  soldering  from  the  outside.  Solder 
contains  a  considerable  portion  of  lead,  and  as  lead  is  to  a  cer- 


MEKRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR  &fl 

tain  extent  poisonous,  it  is  very  desirable  that  all  kitchen 
utensils,  especially  fruit-cans,  should  be  soldered  only  on  the 
outside.  Mary  Clapped  her  hands  at  the  prospect  of  so  much 
money  :  but  John  looked  a  little  downcast,  because  he  did  not 
know  how  he  was  to  get  so  many  bright  clean  oyster-cans. 
lie  timidly  mentioned  something  of  this,  when  Tom  interposed. 
••  Why.  father,  he  can  buy  new  sheets  of  bright  tin.  I  can  get 
some  for  him  when  I  go  to  the  city  to-morrow."* 

"  Yes."'  said  Uncle  Billy.  •■  I  happen  to  be  accptainted  with 
the  tinsmith  there,  and  I  will  send  a  line  to  him.  asking  him 
to  let  you  have  it  as  near  box  prices  as  possible." 

John  was  troubled  still,  for  the  nickel  he  had  just  received 
for  the  cup  was  all  the  money  he  had  in  the  world.  But  a 
brave  boy  as  he  was,  though,  he  spoke  right  out;  and  at  the 
same  time  that  he  thanked  them  he  told  them  the  trouble. 

■■  Why.  look  here.""  said  the  doctor  :  "  here  is  the  money  for 
the  six.  in  advance."" 

"  And  here  is  the  money  for  six  more  that  I  want,"*  \  a'd 
I  "ncle  Billy.  "  It  is  a  pity  if  we  can  not  give  the  *  Temperance 
Hotel"  a  lift  when  it  is  just  starting  out;"*  and  he  gave  the 
doctor  a  look  that  was  understood,  as  he  laughed  good-natur- 
edly. Tom  took  the  money,  and  promised  that  the  tin  should 
be  on  hand  by  the  next  day  noon,  if  nothing  happened,  and 
off  they  all  went.  John  could  hardly  keep  back  the  tears. 
What  did  it  all  mean  V  and  how  was  it  that  even  Tom  seemed 
so  pleasant  and  accommodating  ?  His  mother  told  him  it  was 
simply  the  working-out  of  the  promise  in  the  text  at  the  hea<] 
of  this  chapter,  and  that  he  might  reasonably  expect  people 
in  this  world  to  be  willing  to  help  those  who  are  trying  hard 
to  help  themselves.  At  a  little  before  noon  Tom  drove  up  and 
handed  out  ten  bright  sheets  of  tin  for  the  sixty  cents.  After 
the  tin  was  out.  he  pulled  out  of  his  pocket  a  clean  bright  bar 
of  solder. 

••  Why.  where  did  you  get  that  ?  "  said  .John. 


100  MEKRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

"Oh!  I  had  a  little  money  left,  and  I  thought  you  would 
get  out  before  all  this  tin  was  worked  up.  and  so  I  brought 
it  along.  It  cost  just  30  cents."  As  John  looked  a  little  un- 
decided about  getting  in  debt  so  much  Tom  added.  "  You  just 
lay  it  in  your  drawer  until  you  get  a  lot  of  cups  done,  and  then 
I  will  help  you  sell  them." 

John  found  that  each  sheet  would  make  the  bodies  to  seven 
cups,  and  a  half-sheet  more  would  make  the  bottoms,  with 
sciap  enough  for  all  the  handles.  Before  he  went  to  bed  that 
night,  l he  dozen  were  finished,  and  tied  up  with  strings  ready 
for  delivery.  Before  noon  next  day,  enough  were  made  and 
s<  I  to  pay  for  the  bar  of  solder.  During  all  this  time  John 
*\as  revolving  a  plan  in  his  head  for  making  a  5-cent  pail,  on 
the  same  plan  as  his  cup.  By  the  time  his  bar  of  solder  was 
all  his  own:  his  plan  was  matured.  On  one  side  of  the  cup  is 
a  seam,  you  know  ;  well,  right  opposite  this  seam  he  cut  a  lit- 
tle notch  in  the  body  of  the  cup,  before  it  was  folded  up.  so  as 
to  have  a  break,  as  it  were,  in  this  folded  edge.  Well,  after 
the  cup  was  all  made  but  the  handle,  he,  with  a  sharp-pointed 
sera tel: -awl,  raised  the  fold  and  slipped  in  a  bent  wire,  which 
formed  the  ears  of  the  pail.  The  drawing  below  will  show 
you  how  the  ear  was  made,  and  held  in  position 
until  it  could  be  soldered.  The  ear  was  bent 
from  a  large  common  pin.  after  cutting  off  the 
head  and  sharpening  both  ends  so  it  would  push 
pail-eak.  easily  into  the  fold.  A  piece  of  wire  made  the 
bail,  and  then  it  was  all  ready  for  a  pint  honey-pail,  only  it 
lacked  a  cover.  A  cover  was  soon  made  in  this  way  :  He  made 
a  band  for  the  rim,  just  like  the  body  of  the  cup,  only  it  was 
but  i  of  an  inch  wide,  and  had  a  fold  on  only  one  edge.  This 
fold  was  on  the  outside,  like  the  cup,  but  the  band  was 
of  such  size  that  it  slipped  right  inside  the  pail  until 
stopped  by  the  folded  edge.  A  plain  circle  of  tin,  made  as 
larg?  as  the  outside  diameter  of  the  pail,  was  soldered  on 


MEKKYI  ANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  101 

this  hoop,  as  it  were,  so  as  to  project  equally  on  all  sides.  Aft- 
•er  the  cover  was  put  on  the  pail,  the  edge  of  the  tin  was 
rubbed  down  smooth  with  his  hammer  -  handle,  and  the 
pail  was  done,  only  the  cover  needed  some  sort  of  a  han- 
dle. This  was  made  by  folding  the  edges  of  a  strip  of 
•tin.  somewhat  like  the  cup-handle,  only  it  did  not  taper. 
Here  is  the  whole  pail  and  cover,  just 
as  John  made  it.  Of  course,  Mary  and 
Freddie  were  very  anxious  spectators 
during  the  whole  •  and  the  minute  it 
was  done,  all  trooped  into  the  house 
to  show  the  wonderful  new  tin  pail, 
cover  and  all.  Mary  fairly  clapped  her 
hands  with  delight,  and  John  was  so 
excited  when  he  undertook  to  fill  it  with  water,  to  see  if  it 
would  leak,  that  he  dipped  his  hand  into  a  pan  of  milk,  and 
then  started  to  the  spring  after  some  water,  with  a  bas- 
ket. To  the  chagrin  of  all  the  group,  it  leaked,  and  John 
iiad  to  wipe  it  dry  and  go  over  the  soldering  again.  This 
was  quite  a  shock  to  his  pride  as  a  workman ;  and  as 
Freddie  was  a  little  inclined  to  quote  his  father  as  a  superior 
workman  all  the  time,  John  made  some  pretty  big  resolves 
that  hereafter  his  pails  and  cups  should  never  be  brought  back 
because  they  leaked.  Mary  wanted  to  carry  it  over  to  the 
neighbors  to  show,  but  first  stopped  to  ask  what  the  price 
would  be. 
•;  Five  cents,**  said  John. 

"  Why,  the  cups  are  worth  only  five  cents,  and  this  is  ever  so 
much  more  work." 

"  Can't  help  it,*1  said  John.  "  Ten  cents  would  be  too  much, 
.-and  we  can't  bother  our  customers  with  odd  coppers  in  mak- 
ing change,  [f  they  are  cheap  at  five  cents  we  shall  have  the 
imore  to  make,  that  is  all.*' 

John  sat  down  to  the  task  of  making  a  better  one,  and  one 


102 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HliS  NEIGHBOR. 


that  would  not  leak.     Mary  was  soon  back,  all  out  of  breath, 
saying, 

11  Mr.  Merrybanks  says  he  wants  a  dozen  just  like  it  to  put 
honey  in,  and  here  is  the  (JO  cents." 

John  was  already  a  man  of  business,  and  no  mistake ;  and 
with  the  pleasure  and  joy  that  he  felt  in  being  able  to  earn 
money  fairly  and  honestly,  there  came  a  little  worry  about  his 
ability  to  take  care  of  all  the  trade  that  seemed  piling  in. 
At  this  juncture  our  jolly  old  friend  came  up  with  the  pail 
in  question. 

"  John,  you  have  opened  up  a  streak  of  business,  and  no  mis- 
take ;  but.  my  boy.  you  must  not  stick  to  it  too  closely.  You 
are  tired  now.  are  you  not  ?  " 

Come  to  think  of  it,  John  thought  he  did  feel  a  little  tired. 

"  Well,  it  is  best  to  take  things  with  moderation  in  this- 
world.    Where  is  your  father  ?  " 

il  He,  with  the  horse,  is  working  for  I'ncle  Billy  to-day." 

c'  Well,  that  is  good,  isn't  it  ?  Now,  you  see  those  pails  of 
yours  hold  just  a  pound  and  a  half  of  honey  easily,  and  at  pres- 
ent prices  it  should  retail  for  an  even  20  cents.  Now.  as  it  is 
quite  a  bother  for  me  to  run  to  weigh  out  honey,  suppose  you 
keep  a  few  of  these  pails  full  here,  and  put  out  a  sign,  and  I 
will  give  you  10  per  cent  commission.  Here  is  a  pailful  to 
commence  on."'  P  wfrTffX*£?ffi^W^WWr 

In  a  twinkling  the  pail  of  honey  was 
hung  in  a  conspicuous  place,  and  un- 
der it  was  a  board  that  read  like  this : 

" Now,"  said    neighbor    M.,  "you 
want  some  better  mode  of  folding  your 
tin  for  cups  and  pails.    Haven't  you 
got  some  little  boards  here?    Freddie,  will  you  run  over  and 
get  that  piece  of  galvanized  iron  on  the  work-bench ?"' 

The  sheet  iron  was  brought,  and  from  it  were  cut  four  strips. 
4xl4|  inches.    At  intervals  near  one  edge,  holes  were  drilled 


MKUWY HANKS   AND   MIS  NKIUHIJOK. 


va 


large  enough  to  receive  common  wood  screws.     In  one  of  these 

pieces,  the   holes   were  ill  I  tiled  oblong,  with  a  round    tile,  as 
in  the  adjoining  cut. 

Next,  two  hard- 
wood boards.  -1\!V.. 
were  provided.  They 
were  laid  side  by  side,  and  then  bung  together  with  a  binge 
nailed  into  the  end  of  each  board.  The  hing<  s  were  made  of 
the  galvanized  iron,  by  livetingone  strip  to  the  end  of  another, 
as  in  cut.  The  small  holes  show  you 
where  it  was  nailed  in  the  ends  of  the 
boards.  Xow  three  of  i  he  above  strips 
were  laid  on  one  of  the  boards,  and 
screwed  fast.  The  piece  with  the  ob- 
long holes  was  the  center  one.  and  thus  by  loosening  Un- 
screws at  any  time,  the  width  of  the  fold  could  be  adjusted. 
The  third  piece  was  put  on  the  other  board.  Jt  was  soon  done, 
and  looked  like  this:— 

John  found,  to  his 
great  delight,  that  he 
could  fold  his  seams 
with  this  by  just  put- 
ting the  v(\^q  of  the 
tin  under  the  galvan- 
ized iron,  so  quickly  that  it  seemed  almost  like  magic. 

••  Now.'*  said  friend  M..  *'  come  over  in  my  orchard  and  get 
some  ripe  apples,  and  play  around  as  boys  usually  do. and  then 
you  can  make  pails,  and  live-cent  coffee-pots  too.  if  you  like." 

It  is  Saturday  night  again.  The  family  are,  as  before,  sit- 
ting on  one  of  the  logs  that  go  across  the  bridge.  On  the 
front  of  the  •"  Temperance  Hotel  "  are  hung  pint  cups,  half- 
pint  cups,  quart  cups,  pint  pails  full  of  honey,  and  some  not 
full.  John's  father  has  got  some  money  that  he  has  earned 
himself:  so  has  John's  mother:  so  has   Mary,   that    she  got 


104  MERRYRANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

from  selling  cups  at  a  commission  of  tfc  ten  per  cent."'  John's 
father  has  just  repeated  the  text  at  the  head  of  our  chapter, 
-and  asked  his  wife  if  it  can  really  be  such  as  he  whom  Jesus 
meant  when  those  words  were  spoken.  John's  mother  re- 
minded him  that,  as  it  was  Saturday 
night,  he  had  better  take  down  the 
things  and  put  them  away. 

"Please  let  them  be  up  a  little  longer, 
mother  ;    I  am  sure  somebody  will  be 
along  and  want  something  more."* 
In  a  few  minutes  more  he  came  out  of 

FIVE-CENT    COFFKF.POT.    ^    u  j^j „     ^^     R    ^^     exhi  biUng 

his  new  five-cent  coffee-pot.    Here  is  a  picture  of  it. 

Do  you  wonder,  dear  reader,  that  all  the  little  household  are 
happy,  and  that  their  faith  in  God  and  the  future  is  bright 
this  Saturday  night  V 


CHAPTER   XXV. 

And  the  rain  (b'seended,  and  the  floods  came,  and  the  winds  blew,  and 
heat  upon  that  house,  and  it  i'ell  not;  for  it  was  founded  upon  a  rock.— 
Matt.  7:25. 

IT  was  the  next  week  one  morning,  that  John,  as  he  woke 
up,  heard  the  sound  of  rain  on  the  roof.    He  looked  out, 
and  it  was  rain   everywhere  apparently;  and  as  he  met 
his  mother  he  remarked,— 

;t  I  guess  pa  won't  work  to-day  anyway,  because  it  rains  so 
he  can't.77 

t;  But  /  guess  he  will ;  and  more  than  that,  he  has  been  at 
work  some  time."  There  was  a  pleasant  twinkle  in  his 
mother's  eye  as  she  sad  this,  and  at  the  same  time  noted 
John's  look  of  surprise  as  he  looked  over  the  small  house  and 
could  see  nothing  of  his  father.    Dear  reader,  did  you  ever  see 


M  B  K  U  Y  H  A  N  KS  AND  HIS  NEIGH  BO  ft.  105 

anybody  sit  down  and  complain  tliere  was  nothing  to  do  when 
yon  could  see  a  dozen  things  that  needed  doing  sadly?  And 
did  you  ever  notice  other  people  of  your  acquaintance  who 
were  always  busy,  and  who  would  rind  some  work  to  do,  even 
during  the  few  minutes  they  were  waiting  for  dinner,  or  at 
any  other  similar  odd  moment V  I  suspect  the  reason  why 
some  are  so  industrious,  and  others  are  not,  is  because  some 
are  more  selfish  than  others.  I  here  use  the  word  "  selfish  " 
in  a  sense  bordering  close  on  laziness  ;  a  lazy  person  is  always 
a  selfish  one.  I  believe,  although  a  selfish  person  may  not  al- 
ways be  a  lazy  one.  perhaps.  Well,  one  whose  heart  is  full, 
and  tired  by  the  sublime  words  of  our  Savior,  that  so  stirred 
the  heart  of  John's  father,  can  not  well  be  lazy  or  idle.  I  will 
repeat  his  favorite  little  text,  for  you  may  have  forgotten  it : 
"  Thou  shalt  love  the  Lord  thy  God  with  all  thy  heart,  and 
with  all  thy  soul,  and  with  all  thy  strength,  and  with  all  thy 
mind  ;  and  thy  neighbor  as  thyself. "  Well,  it  was  through 
this  text  that  our  friend  had  learned  to  love  work,  and  to  be 
happier,  too.  than  he  had  ever  before  been  in  all  his  life,  even 
though  he  was  at  the  very  time  fighting  against  the  cravings 
for  tobacco.  In  fact.  I  am  not  really  sure  he  was  not  happier 
for  those  cravings.  Do  you  remember  the  lines  of  the  little 
hymn?— 

Soul,  then  know  thy  lull  salvation; 

Rise  o'er  sin  and  t'enr  and  care: 
.Toy  to  find  in  every  station 

.Something  still  to  do  or  beak. 

Well,  after  John  had  been  sorely  puzzled  at  the  queer  smile 
on  his  mother's  face,  he  all  at  once  thought  he  heard  a  strange 
sort  of  scratching  or  scraping.  At  first  he  thought  it  was 
overhead,  but  finally  decided  it  was  under  the  floor.  His 
father  could  not  well  be  under  the  lloor,  for  there  was  not 
room  for  him.  unless  he  lay  down  on  his  face  and  crawled, 
lie  opened  the  door  on  the  side  opposite  the  storm,  and  looked 
under.    There   was  his  father,  sure  enough,  scraping  out  a 


lOti  MERRYBANKS  AND  BIS  NEIGHBOR. 

place  in  Uie  dirt,  so  he  could  manage  to  sit  up  by  bending  low 
his  head.  John  was  soon  under  there  too.  by  his  side,  and 
very  soon,  by  the  aid  of  the  spade,  shovel,  and  hoe.  they  could 
both  work  quite  comfortably.  It  is  true,  the  water  started  two 
or  three  times  to  run  in  on  to  them,  from  the  rain  :  but  by 
vigorously  banking  up  the  dirt  it  was  kept  away,  and  by  break- 
fast time  a  place  was  made  that  would  almost  do  to  call  a  cel- 
lar. Did  they  enjoy  it?  To  be  sure,  they  did  :  and  as  John 
bowed  his  head  while  the  father  asked  God's  blessing  on  all 
the  little  household  at  their  morning  meal,  I  am  sure  every 
one  of  the  four  echoed  his  words  from  the  bottom  of  their 
hearts,  even  though  it  was  a  damp  and  rainy  morning.  Ik- 
fore  noon,  John's  father  struck  a  rock  which  proved  to  be  the 
same  one  found  down  by  the  new  spring.  The  rock  was  at  a 
depth  that  made  it  rather  high  for  the  cellar  bottom,  and 
John  proposed  they  should  split  out  pieces,  and  use  them  for 
a  wall  on  which  to  support  the  building. 

"But  we  are  not  masons,  my  boy,  and  we  don't  know  how 
to  cut  stone  and  lay  it  up  into  a  wall,  even  if  we  had  a  mason's 
tools.1' 

u  But,  father,  I  know  we  can  do  it.  if  we  only  try  hard  ;  and 
we  can  do  it  rainy  days,  so  it  won't  cost  any  thing." 

"  All  right,-'  said  his  father ;  "  we  will  do  our  best  at  it." 

With  the  spade,  a  place  was  cut  into  the  rock,  comparative- 
ly soft  through  dampness,  right  under  the  center  of  the  house, 
and  in  this  a  post  was  set.  that  just  drove  under  the  main  tim- 
ber of  the  house,  effectually  preventing  the  tottering  of  the 
floor  overhead,  even  if  John  should  get  excited  and  jump  up 
and  down  at  the  success  of  their  experiments.  They  soon 
found  the  hole  in  the  rock  filling  with  water. 

"  Why,  father  it  must  be  another  spring." 

"  Very  likely.'"1 

t;  Oh!  I'll  tell  you!  We  will  just  make  that  drain  in  the 
rock,  that  runs  up  to  the  spring,  come  clear  up  into  the  cellar. 


MKHHYBANKS  AND  1118  NEIGHBOR  107 

and  then  the  water  won't  do  any  hurt.  Can  we  not  do  that, 
father?" 

%i  I  was  just  thinking  of  the  same  thing.  John,  and  I  think 
we  can  do  it."  It  took  a  great  deal  of  hard  work,  but  it  was 
done.  More  than  that,  a  place  was  scooped  out  in  the  rock, 
for  setting  pans  of  milk,  and  there  they  had  a  nice  little 
spring-house  right  in  the  cellar. 

[  suppose  it  w  ill  now  hv  as  good  a  time  as  any  to  tell  you 
about  the  speckled  trout. 

You  see.  while  Mr.  Merrybanks  was  visiting  some  friends 
in  Connecticut,  he  was  so  much  taken  up  with  the  beauty  of 
the  speckled  trout  of  the  mountain  streams,  that  he  brought 
quite  a  lot  of  small  ones  home,  and,  looking  about  for  a  place 
where  they  could  have  fresh  spring  water,  he  decided  on  a  spot 
near  to  John's  temperance  hotel,  which  you  saw  in  the  picture 
a  few  pages  back.  A  secure  dam  of  stone  was  made  across 
the  brook,  and  in  the  center  of  the  little  pond  thus  formed 
was  a  tuft  of  aquatic  plants  and  grasses.— a  sort  of  little 
island  in  appearance.  Of  course,  the  children  all  took  a  very 
lively  interest  in  the  work;  and  when  the  beautiful  little  fishes 
were  set  at  liberty,  their  admiration  and  joy  hardly  knew  any 
bounds.  The  lish  pooh  became  quite  tame,  and  would  come 
up  to  be  fed  as  readily  as  a  lot  of  chickens,  when  no  stranger 
was  near  ;  but  at  the  lirst  glimpse  of  a  strange  face  they  were 
oft  under  the  little  island  so  quickly  that  no  one  would  ever 
dream  there  were  any  lish  at  all  in  the  little  pond.  However. 
if  he  came  up  and  stood  there  a  while,  pretty  soon,  to  his  great 
surprise,  he  saw  a  beautiful  fish  in  the  water,  where,  a  second 
before,  there  was  none,  as  it  came  so  suddenly  and  quietly  he 
was  half  tempted  to  say  it  then  and  there  for  the  first  time 
sprung  into  existence.  In  this  way.  another  and  then  another 
would  all  at  once  start  into  view,  with  a  suddenness  that 
would  lead  you  to  declare  most  positively  they  could  not  have 
swum  out  from  the  weeds  in  the  center  island.     Well,  as  little 


108  MERRYHANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

lishes,  like  little  bees,  are  always  ripe  for  mischief  or  adven- 
ture, it  was  not  long  before  they  found  their  way  through  the 
subterranean  passage,  up  into  Mr.  Jones's  cellar,  and  merry 
times  did  the  children  have  watching  for  them  by  lamplight  as 
they  came  trooping  in  one  after  the  other,  only  to  scud  around 
the  pans  of  milk  a  few  times,  and  then  hustle  off  down  to  the 
pond  again,  through  the  narrow  way  cut  in  the  rock.  Of  course, 
everybody  had  to  see  the  speckled  trout,  and  so  it  transpired 
that  all  of  Onionville,  and  some  folks  who  didn't  live  there, 
came  to  see  the  sight,  and  were  thereby  induced  to  make  pur- 
chases at  John's  wt  hotel."  Of  course,  every  one  must  have  a 
drink  out  of  the  tin  cup,  and  then  pretty  nearly  every  visitor 
had  to  take  a  cup  home  just  because— well,  I  really  do  not 
knowT  why  everybody  had  to  buy  one,  unless  it  was  because 
they  looked  so  bright  and  clean  ;  for  John  did  not  make  them 
much  faster  than  people  wanted  them. 

Close  beside  the  little  trout-pond  was  placed  a  gentle  colony 
of  Italian  bees,  and  the  sight  of  the  pretty  creatures,  as  they 
sported  in  front  of  the  hive,  which  was  nicely  leveled  up,  and 
banked  in  front  with  white  sand,  was  almost  as  great  an  at- 
traction to  visitors  as  the  speckled  trout.  A  path  ran  up  to 
the  barrel,  where  one  could  look  in  and  see  the  sand  still  boil- 
ing up  in  the  bottom,  as  the  pure  spring  water  came  forth 
from  the  rock.  On  either  side  of  this  path,  and,  in  fact,  over 
the  whole  tract  of  ground  that  had  been  the  slop-hole,  John's 
father  had  sown  turnips,  and  planted  white  beans,  as  these 
were  the  only  two  crops  he  knew  of  that  would  mature  so  late 
in  the  season.  As  this  garden  patch  was  so  plainly  in  sight, 
it  was  kept  very  cleanly  tilled  ;  for,  in  fact,  so  pleasant  a  spot 
was  it  that  the  whole  family  were  frequently  out  there  with 
their  hoes ;  and  Nature,  as  if  in  gratitude  for  their  care, 
smiled  with  a  most  luxuriant  vegetation.  Some  way,  some 
flowers  got  in  along  the  border,  and  among  them  were  a  few 
spider  plants  and  hgworts  that  somehow  strayed  across  from 


MERRY HANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  H» 

friend  Merrybanks*  premises,  and  the  old  slop-hole  was  truly 
transformed  into  a  place  that  the  children  would  have  nick- 
named the  Garden  of  Eden  had  not  John's  mother  reproved 
them. 

"  But.  mother,  is  it  not  most  beautiful?*"  said  John. 

"  Yes,  my  boy.  it  is  most  beautiful ;  but  you  know  the  beau- 
ty did  not  come  without  most  earnest,  hard  work."* 

••  Xo.  indeed,  it  did  not  mother ;  but  why  did  we  not  have 
it  so  latt  summerV*' 

The  mother  did  not  answer  ;  but  if  we  could  have  looked 
into  her  thoughts,  I  think  the  answer  would  have  been.  that. 
a  year  ago,  God  and  the  Bible  had  not  yet  entered  into  their 
little  household.  The  garden  and  little  dooryard  were  not  the 
only  things  that  had  changed,  for  now  the  whole  family,  in- 
cluding both  John  and  Mary,  were  membeis  of  the  little 
church  just  over  the  way,  and  not  only  had  they  helped  some 
to  pay  the  minister  his  salary,  but  a  payment  had  been  made 
on  the  old  gray  horse  ;  and  with  the  amount  of  work  Mr.  Jones 
had  found  to  do  with  him,  the  prospect  was  fair  that  he  would 
be  entirely  paid  for  in  due  time.  All  these  changes  had  come 
in  but  little  more  than  two  months'  time,  since  that  eventful 
Saturday  night. 

As  Onionville  is  a  rather  small  place  for  very  much  trade  in 
a  certain  line,  John  found  he  must  make  larger  articles  of  tin- 
ware to  do  very  much  of  a  business,  and  these  would  require 
expensive  tools  and  machinery.  Besides,  the  vacation  was 
over  and  he  must  go  to  school.  John  once  did  offer  the  sug- 
gestion, that  he  should  attend  to  the  hotel,  in  place  of  going 
to  school ;  but  a  single  look  from  his  mother  made  him  drop 
that  idea. 

"  Is  not  our  boy,  with  all  his  skill  and  ingenuity,  to  be  also 
one  of  education  and  culture?" 

"  But,  mother,  I  can  work  at  the  tinware  nights  and  morn- 
ings and  Saturdays,  can  I  not?** 


ID 


MEKUY BANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 


••  Surely,  iny  son,  if  you  do  not  deprive  yourself  of  the  out- 
door exercise  schoolboys  always  need." 

'•And  you  will  sell  things  to  folks  when  they  come  after  them, 
will  you  notV" 

ki  To  be  sure.  I  will ;  and  days  when  father  doas  not   find 
work,  he  is  going  to  make  some  things  of  woo  1  that  we  hope 
may  sell  as  well  as  the  tinware.'1 
••  Oh!  what  things,  mother?" 

••  Well,  we  d  >  not  exactly  know  yet,  but  perhaps,  when  you 
get  home  from  school  to-night,  he  may  show  you  some  of 
them." 

Sure  enough,  when  John  got  home  that  night  his  father  had 
quite  a  number  of  knife  or  nail  boxes  made  up  just  like  the 
picture  below : — 

The     boxes   were    made  of 

t  basswood.  that   he  purchas- 

ed  at  a  planing-mill  near  by. 

and  the  cutting-up  he  did  by 

the  ten-cent  knife-box.        means  of  a  miter-box  that  he 

found  described  in  some  old  volumes  of  Gleanings,  that  friend 

Merrybanks  loaned  him.    Lest  you  have  forgotten  it.  I  give 

the  picture  again  :— 


OLDU.')YD*S    MITER-BOX. 

You  see  he  sawed  the  boards  out  to  the  right  width,  planed 
one  edge,  and    placed  these  planed   edges  all   exactly  level. 


MBRBYBANKfi  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  Ill 

Then  they  were  wedged  in  the  miter-box.  which  had  a  cut  to 
give  exactly  the  right  bevel  and  slant,  and  he  could  saw  a 
tight  joint  as  easily  as  he  could  cut  a  board  square  off.  This 
made  the  side  and  ends ;  and  when  he  made  the  middle  piece, 
that  holds  the  handle,  he  clamped  several  boards  together, 
•cut  the  ends  in  the  miter-box  as  before,  and  then,  without 
loosening  them,  he  bored  three  holes  through  all,  where  the 
hand-hole  is.  cut  out  the  corners,  and  smoothed  the  oblong 
hole  with  sandpaper.  Then  the  whole  were  firmly  screwed  in 
his  vise,  and  the  tops  finished  down  to  a  pattern,  with  draw- 
knife,  plane,  and  sandpaper.  After  the  boxes  were  all  nailed 
;except  the  bottom  |  they  were  turned  over,  and  the  lower 
edges  dressed  level :  and  then  a  i-inch  bottom  was  nailed 
on,  so  as  to  project  a  little  on  all  sides,  as  you  see.  The  trays. 
:is  he  made  them,  were  8£  x  12  at  the  top.  and  10'  x  7  at  the 
bottom.  The' sides  were  2J  in.  wide.  John  and  Mary  started 
out  in  high  glee  to  sell  them  among  their  neighbors.  John 
took  six.  and  Mary  four.  John's  father  was  a  carpenter  bj 
trade,  and  knew  how  to  do  a  nice  job,  and  the  pretty  white 
basswood.  so  neatly  sandpapered,  seemed  to  captivate  every- 
body's eye.  "  And  only  ten  cents?**  said  the  people  curiously; 
*■  why.  I  am  sure  I  can  afford  that  trifling  sum  :""  and  before 
dark  every  box  was  sold,  and  people  were  coming  to  see  if 
they  had  got  any  more  of  those  "  handy  little  boxes."  Even 
the  one  that  John's  mother  had  got  so  tidily  placed  on  end  in 
the  pantry,  leaning  back  against  the  wall,  with  the  forks  on 
one  side  and  the  knives  on  the  other,  had  to  be  emptied  and 
given  to  a  customer.  Friend  Jones  had  worked  pretty  hard, 
and  got  only  St. 10  for  his  day's  work,  and  the  lumber  he  had 
used  had  cost  22  cents  ;  but  still  he  felt  happy.  This  lot  had 
been  but  an  experiment,  and  he  knew  he  could  make  twice  as 
many  the  next  day,  having  every  thing  all  arranged  as  he  had. 
lie  found  it  quite  a  saving  to  have  John  do  the  nailing,  as  he 


112  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

could,  after  a  little  practice,  nail  one  in  five  minutes,  right 
along. 

One  evening  at  supper,  John's  mother  looked  quite  tired. 
Selling  the  cups,  boxes,  etc.,  aside  from  her  other  work,  prov- 
ed quite  a  task,  and  even  her  boy  was  kind  enough  to  notice 
it,  and  put  in  a  plea  that  she  should  sit  down  for  the  evening 
and  take  a  good  rest. 

"  But,  my  boy,  who  will  do  all  the  picking-up  that  has  to  be 
done,  especially  when  two  romping  children  have  been  alt 
over  the  house  after  the  confinement  of  all  day  in  school?" 

"  Do  Mary  and  I  scatter  things,  mother?" 

"  Oh !  I  guess  not,  more  than  other  children  do,  of  your 
ages."  A  tear  was  in  her  eye  as  she  spoke,  for  her  boy's  so- 
licitude had  touched  her. 

"  Mother,  if  we  put  every  thing  away  that  we  touch  or  han- 
dle, would  it  help  you  very  much?"' 

"  I  think  it  would,  my  boy." 

"  But,"  chimed  in  Mary,  "  we  don't  know  whereto  put  the 
things,  as  mother  does." 

Here,  somewhat  to  the  astonishment  of  all.  the  father  put 
in,  "  Can't  I  help  too?" 

Was  this  really  another  answer  to  prayer?  thought  the 
mother.  She  had  been  sorely  troubled  about  the  disorderly 
ways  of  her  little  family;  and,  if  the  truth  must  be  told,  she 
had  many  times  been  tempted  to  be  cross  and  fretful  at  the 
very  thoughtless  way  in  which  mud  had  been  tracked  in  on 
the  floors  she  had  just  been  at  so  much  pains  to  sweep  and 
clean.  Almost,  as  a  last  resort,  she  had  of  late  been  taking 
these  troubles  to  her  Savior,  and  now,  without  her  having 
said  a  word,  in  some  strange  way  the  whole  of  them  were 
getting  zealous  about  a  reform  in  this  very  matter. 

The  Lord  is  my  shepherd;  1  shall  not  want.— Psalm  23:1. 

Has  any  one  ever  yet  sounded  the  depth  of  those  words? 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  D3 

11  All  right,  father  ;  you  help  us,  and  I  know  we  can  make 
it  easier  for  mother.    What  shall  we  do  first?" 

Mary  supplied  the  needed  information  quite  promptly  by 
saying,  "  Hang  up  your  hat!  there  it  lies  on  the  floor  right  be- 
hind you.*" 

John  whirled  around  in  his  chair,  almost  in  surprise,  but 
presently  recovered,  and  said  a  little  shyly.  "Well,  father's  hat 
is  on  the  floor  too,"  as  if  that  were  a  sufficient  reason  why  his 
should  be  cast  right  on  the  floor  the  minute  he  came  in. 

11  Why,  is  my  hat  on  the  floor?  I  am  sure  I  hung  it  up  as  I 
came  in."* 

•'You  did  hang  it  up,'"  said  the  mother,  ■•  but  it  dropped 
from  the  nail  almost  as  soon  as  you  turned  away." 

"  Well,  now  I  will  tell  you  one  of  our  rules,"' said  the  father. 
"  Xot  only  are  we  all  to  hang  our  things  up,  but  we  are  to 
do  it  carefully,  and  see  that  they  stay  hung  up." 

11  Father,  would  it  not  be  a  good  idea  to  have  all  the  hats 
and  bonnets  hung  in  one  particular  place,  and  have  something 
to  hold  them,  from  which  they  would  not  slip  off  ?  then  every- 
body would  know  just  where  to  put  them,  and  we  would  never 
need  to  hunt  to  see  where  we  hung  our  hats  when—" 

"  The  bees  are  swarming?7"  suggested  Mary. 

"  An  excellent  suggestion,  my  boy  :  and  now  I  will  go  down 
to  the  barn,  and  see  if  I  can  not  make  a  hat -rack."* 

It  was  here  evident  to  the  mother  (who  could  catch  almost 
the  thought  of  the  children  from  their  faces),  that  Mary  had 
something  to  say.  so  she  begged  that  she  might  have  a  hearing. 

ki  It  was  only  this."  said  Mary  ;  "  that  if  we  are  going  to  be 
so  fine  as  to  have  a  hat-rack  in  our  house,  we  had  better  all 
be  very  careful  to  wipe  the  mud  from  our  feet  more  than  we 
do.  before  we  come  into  our  nice  home." 

This  sally  occasioned  a  hearty  laugh  all  round,  and  John 
began  teasing  her  and  pulling  her  around  so  much  at  the  idea 
of  a  "  fine  home."  that  he  was  in  great  danger  of  making  his 


114  MEKRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

mother  more  work  in  the  way  of  mending  dresses,  etc.;  but 
his  father  stopped  him. 

4i  John,  Mary  is  right,  and  we  will  have  a  foot -scraper  and 
mat,  as  well  as  a  hat-rack.  Now  let  us  go  quietly  and  orderly 
to  work,  all  of  us,  to  '  help  mother.*  " 

Down  in  the  barn,  near  the  work-bench,  was  an  old  unused 
turning-lathe ;  but  of  late,  John's  father  had  rigged  it  up  and 
fitted  in  it  a  little  circular  saw  that  he  borrowed  of  friend 
Merrybanks.  Jle  found  this  helped  him  quite  materially  in 
making  the  knife-boxes.  Well,  with  the  lathe  and  buzz-saw 
he  soon  had  the  hat-rack  made  yon  see  here  below  :- 


l'lIK   FIVE-CENT  HAT-RACK, 


The  turned  pins  for  the  above  were  2  inches  long  and  I  inch 
in  diameter.  The  strips  were  long  enough  to  permit  the  pins 
to  stand  8  inches  apart,  from  center  to  center,  and  of  stuff 
sawed  with  the  buzz-saw,  f  wide  by  3-1 G  thick.  Friend  Jones 
has  decided  that  he  can  make  them  of  black-walnut,  and  even 
then  sell  them  for  the  small  sum  of  5  cents.  He  probably  will 
not  get  so  rich  at  the  business  as  to  get  proud,  but  it  will  keep 
him  from  idleness  and  temptation,  and  give  him  much  happi- 
ness, which,  you  know,  even  money  often  fails  to  buy.  Just 
here  Mary  caught  sight  of  John  making  some  strange  motions 
out  on  the  grass. 

'•  ()  mother!  just  see  John  cleaning  his  feet/* 

As  he  came  in  he  walked  up  to  his  mother, ki  There  mother, 
aren't  they  clean  now?"1 

''  Yes,  my  boy,  very  clean."' 

With  mock  gravity  he  goes  up  and  places  his  hat  carefully 


MERRY  BANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  115 

on  the  hat-rack.    Although  there  were  seven  pins  in  it,  thej 

were  all  full  but   one.    He  came  back  and  sat  down  by  his 

mother,  and  she  reached  over  for  her  little  Bible  where  it  lay 

on  the  stand,  and.  opening  it.  read. 

And  the  rain  descended,  and  the  Hoods  came,  and  the  winds  blew,  and 
beat  upon  that  house,  and  it  tell  not:  for  it  was  Founded  upon  a  rock. 

He  thought  a  while,  and  then,  pointing  down  to  his  clean 
shoes,  and  up  at  the  hat-rack,  said, — 

"  Mother,  do  you  think  such  work  is  •  building  on  the  rock/ 
where  mothers  are  so  tired  and  have  to  work  so  hard?" 

li  I  think  it  is,  my  boy.'* 

Reader,  what  do  you  think  ? 


CHAPTEB    XXVI. 

The  wilderness  and  the  solitary  place  shall  be  glad  for  them;  and  the 
desert  shall  rejoice  and  blossom  as  the  rose.— ISA.  35: 1. 

[BELIEVE  you  have  never  had  a  near  view  of  our  friend 
Merrybanks.  Well,  perhaps  I  ought  to  apologize  a  little 
for  bringing  him  before  you  with  his  hat  and  overcoat  on ; 
but.  you  see.  some  of  his  experiments  are  working  nicely  just 
now.  and  I  wanted  you  to  see  him  when  he  looked  so  bright 
and  animated.  It  is  on  a  bright  and  sunshiny  Saturday,  just 
before  Christmas,  and  he  has  been  calling  to  his  neighbor, 
through  the  telephone  they  have  just  got  put  up  and  in  work- 
ing order.  Mr.  Jones  made  the  heads  of  the  telephones  on  his 
lathe  I  have  just  been  telling  you  about.  They  are  turned  out 
of  two-inch  black-walnut  plank,  and  something  like  an  hour- 
glass with  both  ends  open,  only  the  end  you  speak  in  is  much 
larger  than  the  other.  Across  the  small  end  is  tacked  a  piece 
of  very  thin  japanned  sheet-iron,  such  as  can  be  obtained  of 
photograph  artists.     A  sheet.  10x  14,  costs  15  cents.     A  wood- 


1M  MEKRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

en  ring  is  put  over  the  thin  metal,  to  make  it  very  firm,  for  it 
has  to  hold  a  very  heavy  strain,  to  get  the  wire  as  tight  as  it 
should  be.  The  two  houses  are  connected  by  No.  23  annealed 
brass  wire.  Brass  is  better  than  copper  because  it  is  tougher, 
and  will  stand  a  heavier  pull,  while  it  is  much  cheaper,  as  a 
smaller  wire  will  answer.  No.  23  brass  wire  is  worth  about  40 
cts.  per  lb.,  or,  in  small  quantities,  say  10  cts.  per  hundred  feet. 
The  wire  at  each  end  is  put  through  a  small  hole  in  the  thin 
metal  disk,  and  twisted  around  a  short  thick  wire,  to  prevent 
pulling  out.  At  every  one  or  two  hundred  feet  the  wire  is 
supported  by  loops  of  leather  string,  not  unlike  a  common 
leather  shoe-string.  The  wire  must  rest  in  the  leather  loop, 
and  not  be  tied  tight.  When  they  first  put  it  up,  the  voice 
had  a  harsh  grating  sound,  which  John  said  sounded  like 
ducks  quacking.  Friend  M.  said  they  didn't  want  u  quacks" 
of  any  sort  in  that  neighborhood,  and  so  they  looked  over  the 
line  for  the  trouble.  A  loose  end  of  wire  was  found  that 
jarred ;  and  when  this  was  twisted  down  tight  it  did  better ; 
but  still,  the  voice  sounded  harsh  and  wiry.  The  trouble  was 
found  in  the  wire  being  too  loose,  and  they  did  not  get  a  clear, 
natural  tone,  until  it  was  drawn  so  tightly  that  it  fairly  made 
it  "  sing,"  as  John  expressed  it.  When  a  great  many  friends 
were  in,  and  they  wanted  the  telephone  to  make  a  sensation, 
friend  M.  used  to  sing  ''Only  an  Armor-bearer,'*  with  his 
powerful  lungs,  until  the  little  folks  over  at  his  neighbor's 
danced  with  delight.  You  know  the  house  now  stands  on  a 
stone  foundation,  so  they  could  jump  up  and  down  all  they 
pleased,  without  shaking  the  stove  down,  or  making  the  dishes 
roll  off  the  table. 

Well,  here  is  the  picture.  What  do  you  suppose  friend  M. 
is  listening  to  V  From  away  off  through  the  frosty  air,  and 
along  that  slender  wire,  from  out  of  invisible  space,  as  it  were, 
come  the  familiar  tones  of  John's  father's  voice.— 


MERKYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

1 


MB.   MERRYBANKS  TALKING  TO  NEIGHBOR  JONES. 

•All  right  !  we  will  be  right  over.'* 

••And  I  am  coming  too.*"  comes  the  younger  voice  of  John. 

"And  so  am  I;  ma  says  I  may."'  comes  in  Mary's  childish 
voice.  It  is  this  voice  that  brings  that  pleasant  look  on  his 
face  that  you  see.  for  friend  M.  loves  children.  Did  I  never 
tell  you  that  he  was  superintendent  at  the  Sunday-school  over 
at  the  church  ?  Well,  he  is.  and  I  guess  he  is  the  right  man  for 
the  place  too.  Perhaps  you  would  like  to  know  why  he  wants 
them  all  t<»  come  over  just  now.  I  will  tell  you.  Xo.  I  won't 
either.  You  may  just  come  along  and  see  for  yourself.  Friend 
M.  meets  us  at  the  gate,  and.  with  the  same  knowing  smile,  he 
ushers  us  into  the  house,  and  then  points  the  way  for  us  to 
follow  him  into  the  cellar.  Strangely,  he  takes  no  light;  and 
the  contrast  from  the  bright  sunshine  outdoors,  with  the 
darkness  here,  almost  makes  one  feel  he  is  going  into  a  dun- 
geon. After  we  are  all  down  he  shuts  the  door  after  us.  prob- 
ably because  his  good  wife  has  taught  him  to  do  so.  and  then 
bids  us  all  wait  just  one  moment. 

•Why.  it  must  be  that  he  has  got  a  door  in  the  wall,  into 
somewhere."'  said  Mary:  "  see  the  light  along  the  cracks.** 

By  this  time  friend  M.  had  approached  the  door;  and  when 
it  was  opened,  an  exclamation  of  surprise  burst  from  all  the 


118  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

party.  A  cosy  little  glass  house  was  there— or  at  least  one  side 
was  glass,  and  the  strangest  part  of  it  was,  that  it  was  full  of 
humming  bees.  The  ground  was  covered  with  new  soft  saw- 
dust, and  several  25-cent  camp-stools  of  his  own  make  were 
placed  tastily  around,  inviting  them  to  take  a  seat.  Up  Dear 
to  the  large  glass  sash,  which  sloped  to  the  south,  and.  in 
fact,  formed  the  whole  south  side,  were  two  of  the  same  pail 
bee-hives  we  saw  last  summer,  and  bees  were  passing  out  and 
in  as  briskly  as  if  it  were  summer.  In  the  center  of  the  room 
was  a  large  cluster  of  bees  that  looked  for  all  the  world  like  a 
natural  swarm,  only  that  the  bees  were  going  to  and  fro  from 
it  constantly.  A  closer  look,  however,  revealed  the  fact  that 
it  was  only  a  bag  of  thick  ducking  filled  with  sugar  syrup, 
which  continually  oozed  through  the  cloth  in  bead-like  drops, 
which  were  eagerly  sucked  up  by  the  bees,  and  carried  to  their 
hives.  Besides  this  bag  of  syrup,  there  swung,  from  about 
the  center  of  the  sash,  right  in  the  full  blaze  of  the  suiu 
a  bee-hive  cover  containing  a  little  heap  of  rye  Hour.  On 
this  the  bees  were  as  busy  as  you  see  them  on  the  soft-maple 
trees  in  the  spring,  and  the  droning  hum  at  the  mouths  of 
the— pails,  as  bee  followed  bee  with  his  load  of  pollen,  was 
funny  enough,  with  a  cool  frosty  air  on  the  outside. 

•Why.  what  makes  it  so  warm?"  said   Mary  finally;  "I 
don't  see  any  stove  anywhere." 

'•  It  is  the  sun  that  makes  it  so  w  arm,  my  girl.  You  sec,  we 
have  cut  oft'  all  the  cold  winds  by  the  glass ;  and  although  the 
rays  of  the  sun  come  through  miles  of  frosty  air,  when  they 
alight  in  this  cosy  little  room  they  so  warm  it  up  that  we  have 
a  beautiful  summer  temperature.  In  fact,  after  the  sun  gets 
up  a  little  higher,  it  will  be  so  warm  I  may  have  to  open  the 
ventilator.  I  often  sit  here  in  my  shirt-sleeves,  and  read  the 
bee-journals,  even  when  it  is  freezing  outside." 

Freddie,  who  had  just  come  in,  now  took  up  the  conversation. 

11  0  Mary  !  I'll  tell  you  what  makes  it  warm.    Pa  makes  the 


HERRYBANKS    \M>  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  119 

air  come  a  long  way  under  ground,  and  the  ground  thaws  the 
frost  out  of  it.  See  ?"  And  lie  showed  them  pieces  of  drain- 
tile,  laid  all  around  the  outer  walls  of  the  room,  just  a  little 
below  the  floor,  and  covered,  so  the  sawdust  would  not  get  in- 
to the  open  joints,  by  a  long  narrow  box  or  trough,  having 
holes  at  intervals  along  the  top.  This  drain-tile  was  connected 
with  the  cellar  drain,  which  was  of  tile  of  pretty  good  size,  ami 
perhaps  200  feet  long. 

"()  pa  !  light  the  smoker,  and  show  them  how  it  works.'" 

Friend  M.  lighted  his  smoker,  and  puffed  some  smoke  over 
the  holes  in  the  wooden  trough.  It  could  be  plainly  seen  that 
a  little  air  was  oozing  out  of  nearly  all  the  holes.  Then  he 
went  to  the  ventilator  near  the  highest  point  in  the  roof,  and 
opened  it  a  little.  The  smoke  nowr  showed  a  st  rong  current 
outward;  and  on  going  back  to  the  wooden  trough,  each  hole 
sent  up  a  little  jet  of  air. 

••  Oh.  see  !  "  exclaimed  Mary  :  ■•  the  bees  are  all  leaving  the 
floor  and  the  bag  of  syrup,  and  going  into  their  hives." 

••Yes."  said  friend  M.,  "because  our  experiments  have 
cooled  off  the  room  ;  but  I  will  bring  them  out  again.*' 

He  then  closed  the  ventilator  very  tightly,  and  pushed  sonic 
bits  of  tissue  paper  into  every  crevice  around  the  sash,  which 
soon  made  it  so  warm  they  began  to  take  off  their  hats,  and 
the  bees  came  out  in  great  numbers,  and  began  buzzing  in 
the  sunshine,  and  tin  ally  bumping  against  the  glass. 

•There."'  said  he,  "you  see  that  won't  do.  If  we  should 
keep  them  long  at  this  temperature,  without  a  brisk  change  of 
air.  we  should  soon  have  the  room  smelling  badly,  and  they 
would  leave  the  hives,  and  have  dysentery.  It  really  begins 
to  look  to  me  as  if  lack  of  pure  air  has  as  much  to  do  with  the 
cause  of  dysentery,  as  lack  of  pure  food.  ]>efore  I  fixed  my 
ventilating  apparatus  I  had  as  bad  cases  of  dysentery  hero  as 
you  ever  saw  in  the  spring." 

••  Yes."  chimed  in  Freddie.  "  thev  made  every  thing  so  nasty 


120  MKRRYBANK8  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOK. 

that  ma  had  to  come  down  with  a  basin  of  soapsuds.  Why, 
they  even  daubed  the  nasty  stuff  on  the  glass,  and  lots  of  'em 
fell  down  and  died,  and  pa  couldn't  fetch  'em  to  life  again/' 

I  don't  know  but  that  Freddie  would  have  let  a  good  many 
more  "  cats  out  of  the  bag  "  had  not  his  pa.  with  a  smile, 
here  told  him  he  had  said  a  plenty  about  it. 

"Please,  Mr.  M.,  may  I  open  a  hive  ? '"  and  John  looked  up 
wistfully  into  the  face  of  his  kind  old  friend. 

"  Certainly,  my  boy ;  go  on." 

"Do  I  need  smoke  ?" 

44 1  think  not;  the  room  is  warm,  and  they  are  pretty  full  of 
stores,  and  building  comb.  Besides,  smoke  tills  the  room  un- 
pleasantly, unless  one  is  very  careful." 

Brood  was  found  in  all  stages,  and  the  queen  was  enlarging 
her  circles  in  a  way  that  might  look  cheering  to  any  bee- 
keeper. The  hoops  of  comb  were  passed  around,  and  examined 
and  approved  by  all. 

•:  But  what  do  you  do  on  days  when  the  sun  don't  shine  ?  " 
said  Mary. 

"Oh!  I  don't  have  the  bees  work  then.  I  cover  the  sash 
with  the  large  straw  mat  you  see  out  there,  and  open  the  door 
into  the  cellar,  so  it  does  not  get  very  cold.  Whenever  the  sun 
shines  enough  to  set  them  working.  I  take  off  the  mat  and 
close  the  door.'' 

"  Do  you  not  lose  some  that  get  on  the  glass,  and  do  not  get 
back  ? ''  said  John's  father. 

"  Very  few.  when  the  ventilation  is  kept  right.  They  are 
rearing  lots  of  brood;  and  when  the  sun  turns  and  gets  warm- 
er, I  hope  to  build  them  up  so  as  to  get  them  to  swarm  by  the 
time  I  can  get  a  queen  from  some  of  our  friends  in  the  South." 

"Why,"'  said  John,  "  you  can  raise  queens  and  get  them  fer- 
tilized in  here  ;  I'll  bet  you  can."' 

■•  You  mustn't  bet,  John;  and.  besides,  won't  it  be  the  best 


MEKRYIJANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 


12] 


way,  to  get  it  done  before  we  say  much  about  it  ?  We  have 
got  so  far,  and  it  works  very  nicely,  does  it  not  ?  " 

li  Yes.  indeed  it  does,"*  came  from  a  chorus  of  voices. 

••Papa,"  said  Freddie,  "won't  you  show  them  the  machine 
you  invented,  to  make  sleds  and  things  ?*' 

••Sleds  and  things.'"  said  John;  "what  about  'sleds  and 
things'  V* 

"Oh,  you  come  and  see.'"     At  this  the  party  adjourned  to 

friend  M.'s  neatly  arranged  workshop,  and  Freddie  took  them 

up  to  the  scroll-saw.     What  they  saw  was  simply  a  thin  piece 

of  board  laid  on  the  table,  with  a  strip  of  wood  nailed  to  one 

side,  and  a  large  screw  near  one  end,  put  down  through  into 

the  table.     Below  is  a  cut  of  the  table,  with  the  swinging 

board  on  top. 

••  You   will    observe.      said 

friend  M.,  "that  this  device 
is  to  avoid  the  troublesome  op- 
eration of  marking  out  your 
work  from  a  pattern,  and  then 
trying  to  make  the  saw  follow 
the  mark  by  the  eye;  but,  of 
ourse.  it  applies  only  to  work 
where  a  great  number  of  pieces 
are  wanted  all  alike,  and  are  to 
be  cut  on  a  true  circle."  To  show  how  it  could  be  used,  he 
took  a  strip  of  plank  and  laid  it  on  the  swinging  table,  and 
in  a  moment  had  it  cut  as  in  the  dotted  lines  below. 


MB.    MEBRYBANKS      SCROLL- 
SAW  ATTACHMENT. 


HOW   TO   MAKE  TOY   SLEDS. 

A  tack  in  the  swinging  table  served  as  a  stop,  so  that  all  the 


12:2  MERKYBAXKS  AND  H  IS  NEIGHBOR. 

pieces  were  cut  off  just  alike.  Next  he  unscrewed  the  ma- 
chine and  cut  the  round  hole  you  see  in  half  of  the  pieces,  by 
putting  the  screw  through  the  center,  and  then  setting  it  in- 
to the  table  nearer  the  saw.  The  board  was  simply  revolved 
around  the  screw,  and  the  saw  cut  the  circle.  Then  the 
pieces  were  taken  to  his  foot-power  circular  saw.  and  those 
with  holes  in  were  Fplit  through  the  middle,  as  in  preceding- 
cut.  To  make  the  pieces  for  the  sled,  he  had  only  to  take 
off  slices  with  his  circular  saw.  of  the  thickness  required,  and 
plane  them,  and  the  sled  was  ready  to  nail  up.  Mr.  Jones 
planed  the  pieces,  and  nailed  them  up  with  wire  nails,  and  in 
a  twinkling  friend  M.,  with  a  small  pot  of  paint  and  a  stencil 
of  ahorse,  painted  on  thai  animal,  and  the  name  ci  Racer." 


While  the  rest  were  busy  at  the  sleds.  Mary  and  Freddie 
were  looking  at  some  oblong  one-piece  section  boxes  that 
friend  M.  had  ordered  in  some  of  his  honey-experiments ;  and 
Mary,  placing  one  on  the  sled,  suggested  that  it  would  an- 
swer for  a  box,  so  she  could  draw  her  doll  in  it.  John  here 
interposed,  that,  if  the  box  had  a  bottom  to  it,  the  runners 
could  be  nailed  directly  to  it.  and  they  could  be  made  so  rap- 
idly he  could  sell  them  at  his  ik  Hotel,'"  just  before  Christmas, 
for  live  cents  each. 

"Why,  John,'"  said  friend  M.,  "can't  we  put  some  wheels 
on  some  of  them,  and  have  wagons  as  well  as  sleds,  for  only 
five  cents  ?" 

At  this  point  John's  father  picked  up  one  of    the  circles 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  133 

iyou  see.  the  piece  that  comes  out  of  that  opening  in  the  run- 
ners just  makes  a  rocker  .  and  broke  in,— 


IVAGONS    AND   CRADLES    FOR    FIVE  CENTS   APIECE. 

••Why.  look  ;i-here  !    Just  cut  these  in  two.  slice  them  up.  and 

have  rockers  to  put  on  the  boxes,  and  we  have  cradles  for  the 

doll,  as  well  as  sleds:*"  and  while  they  were  busy  working 

out  these  plans,  the  doctor  and  his  boy  Tom  came  in.  having 

heard  of  the  success  of  Hying  bees  in  the  greenhouse.     Tom, 

you  must  know,  has  a  little  printing-press  with  which  he 

prints  wrappers  and  labels  lor  his  father's  medicines,  and  he 

suggested  that  he  could  print  some  nursery  rhymes  on  some 

bronze  paper,  to  be  pasted  on  the  ••  vehicles.'"  to  make  them 

sell  better  for  the  holidays.    The  doctor  took  out  his  pencil, 

and  began  writing  on  one  of  the  sleds.    Tom  also  took  one,  and 

finally  all  the  older  ones  busied  themselves  in  writing  a  verse. 

Friend  M.  wrote  in  the  bottom  of  the  cradle  as  follows:— 

Rock-a-by  baby  upon  the  tree-top, 

When  the  wind  blows  the  cradle  will  rock: 

When  the  bough  breaks  the  cradle  will  fall. 

And  down  will  come  rock-a-by.  baby,  and  all. 

Mr.  .lones  then  wrote  on  the  sled.— 

Mary  had  a  little  sled, 

To  ride  upon  the  snow; 
And  everywhere  that  Mary  went, 

That  sled  was  sure  to  go. 

John  wrote  on  his  (you  will  note  where  his  mind  ran  ,— 

"Tt  was  a  sled  that  Mary  had," 

The  teacher  did  reply; 
"Five  cents  bought  the  little  thing. 

And  how  is  that  for  'high  '  ':" 


124  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

By  this  time  the  doctor  had  studied  up,— 

"  What  makes  the  sled  love  Mars'  so  ?" 
They  cried  in  accents  wild ; 
But  not  a  "feller"  answered  them, 
Though  every  "feller"  smiled. 

Of  course,  they  had  a  big  laugh ;  but  when  Tom  came  to 
produce  his  they  laughed  still  harder.  Here  is  what  he  had 
written,  and  it  was  pretty  well  written  too:  for  Tom.  with  all 
his  faults,  had  much  skill  that  way,— 

Mary  had  a  little  sled; 

I  tell  you  it  was  "  boss;  " 
'  Twas  lots  of  fun  to  see  it  run 
As  fast  as  any  "hoss." 

Right  here  their  merriment  was  interrupted  by  Mrs.  Mer- 
rybanks,  who  excused  herself  by  saying  that  a  kettle  full  of 
maple  candy  was  all  ready  to  be  pulled,  and  t;  would  the  men 
folks  be  so  kind  as  to  come  and  pull  it  ?  "  At  the  same  time, 
she  gave  the  doctor  a  pleasant  smile,  and  told  him  he  was  es- 
pecially wanted,  as  doctors  are  always  expected  to  know  better 
than  anybody  else  how  every  thing  should  be  done  "ex  officio." 

"  Can't  we  help  too, '  ex  officio '  f  "  said  Mary. 

This  occasioned  another  big  laugh,  to  think  that  Mary  had 
unconsciously  said  a  pretty  smart  thing;  and  even  if  her 
father  did  chide  her  a  little  about  being  forward,  Mrs.  M. 
took  her  part  so  pleasantly  that  she  did  not  feel  very  sorry. 

•'Oh!  please,  ma,"  exclaimed  Freddie,  "  can't  I  go  over 
after  John's  mother,  '  ex  officio '  ?  " 

As  permission  was  granted,  we  will  explain,  while  he  is 
gone,  how  maple  candy  is  made.  About  5  lbs.  of  maple  sugar 
is  put  into  an  iron  kettle,  with  perhaps  a  pint  of  hot  water. 
When  melted,  a  piece  of  butter  is  stirred  in,  about  the  size 
of  a  hickory-nut.  It  is  now  boiled  slowly,  until  done,  which 
can  be  ascertained  by  dropping  a  little  into  cold  water.  When 
it  snaps  like  brittle  glass,  it  is  ready  to  pull.  If  not  cooked 
enough,  it  will  be  too  soft  to  handle  when  done  ;  if  too  much. 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  !:*.-> 

it  will  be  burnt.  Good  dry  hard  candy  is  the  golden  mean  be- 
tween these  two  extremes.  To  cool,  it  was  poured  into  large 
dripping-pans,  perhaps  £  inch  deep  in  each  pan,  and  the  pans 
were  then  set  out  in  the  snow.  Of  course,  the  pans  were  pre- 
viously buttered.  As  soon  as  the  candy  began  to  cool  it  was 
picked  up  from  the  edges,  and  rolled  over  into  the  center,  and 
this  process  kept  up  until  the  whole  could  be  taken  up  like  a 
roll  of  dough.  It  wras  then  pulled  until  white.  If  it  got  too 
hard  to  pull,  it  was  taken  near  the  stove ;  if  too  soft,  in  the  air 
before  an  open  door.  Each  one  of  the  party  was  given  a  piece 
to  pull,  and  now  quite  a  strife  sprung  up  to  see  whose  would 
be  whitest.  Of  course,  the  men  expected,  by  their  superior 
strength  ("ex  officio,"  John  said),  to  be  far  ahead;  but  to 
their  surprise,  John's  meek  little  mother  was  ahead  of  them 
all,  and  Mrs.  M.  next.  After  it  was  pulled  out  into  long  slen- 
der threads,  these  wrere  snipped  off  with  shears,  just  right  to 
go  into  Mary's  little  doll-cradle ;  and  almost  before  they  knew 
it,  John  had  a  "  wagon-load  of  maple  candy.''  labeled.— 
a  ONLY  15  CTS.?' 

At  this  point  Tom  fairly  boiled  over  with  joy.  ik  Why,  John, 
you  just  get  up  a  lot  of  these,  and  I  will  print  some  bronzed 
labels  for  them,  and  we  will  have  out  some  posters,  and  adver- 
tise them  all  over  the  country,  and  the  week  before  Christmas 
you  will  sell  millions  and  millions  of  them." 

w"  Yes.  sir,  "ee,"  says  John,  forgetting  for  the  time  how 
many  ciphers  there  are  in  the  arithmetic  in  a  million ;  "  but 
where  can  we  buy  the  sugar  ?  " 

"Oh  !  Uncle  Billy  has  got  a  big  lot  of  it,  for  I  heard  him 
say  he  would  never  sell  it,  if  he  couldn't  get  more  than  9  cents 
per  pound  for  it ;  and  next  spring  you  and  I  will  rent  a  sugar- 
bush  and  make  our  own  sugar,  and—" 

Really,  friends,  I  should  like  to  tell  you  more  what  they 
planned;  but  I  have  only  time  to  say,  they  went  into  it,  and  I 
don't  believe  any  boys  ever  had  a  happier  Christmas  week. 


196  MEBRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

They  hired  Mr.  M.  to  work  for  them  with  his  tools,  at  a  dol- 
lar a  day;  Mrs.  Jones  made  the  candy;  Mary  and  Freddie 
nailed  up  the  vehicles  and  cradles,  and  pasted  the  labels  on, 
and  at  nine  o'clock  the  day  before  Christmas  they  counted  up 
their  money,  and  found  they  had  taken  in  for  tinware  and  al! 
>you  see,  they  sold  candy  by  the  pailful  as  well  as  wagonful), 
$19.45,  besides  having  quite  a  little  sugar  and  other  stock  on 
hand,  all  paid  for.  Tom  sold  out  his  interest  to  John  for 
$10.00,  so  John  was  sole  proprietor.  In  the  next  chapter  I  will 
tell  you  how  Tom  bronzed  labels,  and  what  the  Temperance 
Hotel  did  in  the  month  of  January.  Truly  the  sad  and  dilap- 
idated home  of  John  Jones  was  beginning  to  blossom  as  the 
rose,  even  in  the  winter,  and  the  way  it  got  to  be  the  favorite 
gathering-place  for  the  people  of  Onionville,  under  the  kind 
guidance  of  friend  Merrybanks  (was  it  really  Merrybanks.  or 
the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  whom  he  loved  to  serve?)  would  not  in- 
aptly remind  one  of  our  opening  text. 


CHAPTER  XXVII. 

L  have  been  young-,  and  now  am  old;   yet  have  1  not  seen  the  right- 
eous forsaken,  nor  his  seed  begging  bread.— Psalm  37:25. 

4PTEE  Christmas,  things  seemed  rather  dull,  and  Mr. 
Jones,  for  the  first  time  in  many  weeks,  found  it  hard  to 
get  work  to  do.  The  roads  were  bad,  and  every  opening 
to  earn  even  25  cents  a  day  seemed  to  have  been  closed,  for  no 
one  got  out  away  from  home.  All  that  the  surrounding  far- 
mers had  to  do.  they  did  themselves ;  and  there  were  so  many 
offering  to  work  at  the  sawmill,  at  whatever  price  the  owner 
would  give  them,  during  the  winter  months,  there  seemed  no 
kind  of  a  chance  there.  To  tell  the  whole  truth,  he  began  to 
feel  a  great  longing  for  his  pipe  during  these  dull  days,  and 


MBRHYBANKS  AM)  His  NEIGH BOK.  W 

.Satan  kept  \\  hispering  there  could  not  be  anything  so  very 
wrong  in  a  simple  matter  like  this,  until  he  was  in  very  great 
danger  indeed  of  getting  back  into  his  old  ways.  He  did  very 
wisely  indeed  in  telling  his  wife  all  about  it.  I  hardly  think 
he  would  have  done  this  had  it  not  been  for  a  very  warm 
friendship  that  had  recently  sprung  up  between  the  two.  I 
dare  say  some  of  the  friends  may  smile  at  the  idea  of  a  friend- 
ship springing  up  between  man  and  wife  :  but.  if  I  mistake  not, 
there  may  be  others  who  know  something  what  a  friendship  of 
this  kind  is.  Young  folks  often  form  friendships  (if  you  will 
excuse  the  word]  before  marriage  :  but  they  do  not  then  know 
each  other  as  they  do  after  a  few  years  of  acquaintance  amid 
the  sometimes  monotonous  duties  of  home  life.  Well,  the 
great  friendship  between  John's  father  and  mother  com- 
menced about  the  time  they  formed  a  habit  of  kneeling  in 
prayer  together  the  last  thing  at  night,  and  asking  God  for  all 
they  felt  they  needed.  After  both  voices  had  been  lifted  up 
to  God,  each  felt  a  new  trust  and  confidence  in  the  other ;  and 
itwasaftersuch.au  exercise  that  he  ventured  to  tell  her  he 
feared  he  was  losing  trust  in  God  a  little,  and  also  felt  a  long- 
ing for  his  old  tobacco.  The  Bible  soon  supplied  the  little 
text  at  the  head  of  our  chapter,  and  her  bright  womanly  faith 
and  trust  soon  made  him  feel  ashamed  of  any  such  feelings. 
They  were  all  regular  in  attendance  at  all  Sunday  services,  and 
no  Sabbath  passed  without  something  being  contributed  to  the 
cause  of  God's  work.  The  utmost  economy  was  practiced  in 
-all  their  expenditures,  and  so  she  felt  she  had  a  right  to  plead 
with  her  Savior,  on  the  strength  of  the  promises  in  his  holy 
word.  She  was  but  a  small,  weak,  feeble  woman;  but  her 
faith  in  God  was  bright,  and  she  knew  their  prayers  would  be 
heard.  She  did  not  know,  however,  after  all.  and  I  presume 
never  dreamed,  of  the  way  in  which  God  would  use  those 
prayers,  nor  of  the  cares  and  trials  that  would  come  through 
the  answer  to  them.    Sometimes  God  sees  tit  to  answer  our 


12*  MEHRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

prayers  so  quickly  that  we  are  fairly  startled.  At  other  times 
it  may  be  years  before  it  would  be  best  for  us  to  have  them 
answered,  or  even  safe  for  us.    This  one  came  very  quickly. 

'•Mr.  Jones.  I  want  you  to  help  me  right  away,  this  very 
morning/" 

It  was  Uncle  Billy,  and  he  seemed  in  a  great  hurry  as  he- 
stood  in  the  door  on  that  stinging  cold  morning.  The  hus- 
band and  wife  exchanged  glances. 

11  All  right,  sir.    What  tools  shall  I  bring  ?  " 

"  Bring  all  the  tools  you  used  in  cutting  that  underdrain  in 
the  rock." 

k'  But,  isn't  it  pretty  —  " 

Here  he  stopped  abruptly,  because  of  a  look  of  pain  in  his 
wife's  face,  as  she  shook  her  head  at  him. 

"  What  is  it,  my  man  ?    Out  with  it." 

"  I  beg  pardon,  Uncle  Billy.  I  was  just  going  to  ask  if  it  is 
not  pretty  cold  for  such  work  ;  but  I  want  to  take  it  back,  and 
to  say  that  I  will  gladly  go  anywhere,  and  do  any  thing  you 
bid  me,  to  earn  an  honest  living." 

"  Spoken  like  a  man,  Mr.  Jones.  Here  is  my  hand  on  it,  and 
you  just  stick  to  that  and  we  will  be  friends." 

Do  you  see  how  near  he  came  to  rejecting  the  answer  to  their 
prayers,  when  it  was  brought  to  his  very  door?  Uncle  Billy 
was  a  man  who  did  not  stop  long  to  coax  one  who  was  afraid 
of  frost  or  cold  weather. 

The  work  was  over  on  the  hill  near  their  home.  Mr.  Jones 
did  as  he  was  bid,  and  asked  no  further  questions.  Before 
night,  rough  blocks  of  stone  were  got  out ;  and  in  rough 
sheds,  hastily  built  of  boards,  masons  were  getting  ready  to 
cut  them  into  shape.  Mr.  Jones  was  called  on  in  a  good  many 
ways  at  once  ;  and  because  the  business  was  new  to  him  he 
got  some  very  harsh,  unkind  words.  But  he  remembered  the 
prayer  of  the  night  before,  and  also  the  kind  words  of  Uncle 
Billy,  and  he  some  way  felt  sure  that  Uncle  Billy  would  inter- 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  129 

fere  if  the  abuse  went  too  far.  For  his  part  he  decided  to  do 
the  best  he  knew  how.  quietly,  and  trust  —  yes.  trust  God  to 
take  care  of  him. 

Many  surmises  were  made  as  to  what  Uncle  Billy  wanted  of 
such  stone:  but  to  all  inquiries  he  only  replied  he  thought  they 
11  might  come  handy  some  day.**  But  the  question  was,  Why 
should  he  take  such  a  sudden  notion  to  commence  such  work, 
right  in  the  middle  of  winter  ?  As  they  were  gathering  up  the 
tools  at  night,  he  said.  "  Mr.  Jones,  you  have  had  it  a  little 
hard  to-day  :  but  after  the  men  know  you.  and  you  know  them, 
I  guess  it  will  be  all  right.*"  That  was  all,  but  it  did  a  great 
deal  of  good. 

As  the  weather  moderated  so  the  stone  could  be  handled 
and  worked,  the  new  stone  quarry  began  to  be  quite  a  busy 
place ;  and  as  most  of  the  hands  from  both  the  quarry  and 
sawmill  passed  the  little  house  beside  the  watering-trough, 
going  to  and  from  their  meals,  quite  a  little  trade  started  up 
in  tin  cups,  pails,  honey,  maple-sugar  candy,  etc.  While  John 
was  at  school,  his  mother  was  obliged  to  sell  the  things  ;  and, 
to  make  it  more  convenient  for  her,  John  and  his  father  ar- 
ranged a  kind  of  stand  each  side  of  their  front  door,  for  the 
utensils,  so  they  would  be  in  sight  from  the  road.  This  stand 
was  such  as  you  sometimes  see  for  flower-pots,— a  sort  of  steps, 
as  it  were,  one  above  the  other.  Besides  the  25 -cent  pails  for 
honey.  John  had  made  some  i-lb.  pails,  to  be  sold  full  of  hon- 
ey, for  only  a  dime.  These  he  made  one  Saturday,  and  as 
they  seemed  just  right  for  a  lunch,  the  workmen  who  carried 
their  dinners  took  them  off  in  no  time. 

While  Mr.  Merrybanks  was  one  day  waiting  in  the  city,  he 
came  across  a  stock  of  small  jelly-tumblers,  holding  just  about 
\  lb.  of  honey.  By  purchasing  the  lot,  he  got  them  for  24  cts. 
per  dozen.  John  soon  made  tin  caps  for  these,  at  a  cost  of 
i  cent,  and  there  they  had  a  glass  package  for  honey,  that 
could  be  sold  at  a  profit  at  3  cents.    The  whole  neighborhood 


130  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

made  a  run  on  them,  until  every  family  had  one  or  more  of 
these  pretty  little  tumblers;  and  after  that  they  allowed  3 
cents  each  for  all  that  were  returned.  Well,  friend  M.  also 
found  in  the  city  some  little  tin  pie-plates,  tf  inches  across,  that 
he  got  so  John  could  sell  them  at  3  cents,  and  a  larger  size  for 
5  cents.  Johns  mother  was  an  adept  in  making  pies,  and  it 
was  not  very  long  before  a  brisk  trade  had  started  up  on  o-cent 
pies,  and  this  paved  the  way  for  some  beautiful  light  gems 
(to  go  with  the  honey)  that  the  workmen  always  found  smok- 
ing hot,  just  at  dinner-time,  at  the  house  beside  the  spring. 
Two  gems  and  a  dish  of  honey  were  only  5  cents.  Did  I  tell 
you  they  had  a  fine  crop  of  beautiful  white  beans,  where  that 
old  slop-hole  used  to  be  ?  Well,  they  did ;  and  as  there  had 
been  no  good  offer  for  them,  they  had  not  been  sold.  Alto- 
gether, they  contrived  to  fix  up  some  most  tempting-looking 
little  dishes  of  baked  beans,  each  one  having  a  tiny  piece  of 
nice  pork  in  it,  that  just  captivated  the  quarry- workers ;  and 
when  hot  coffee  (for  only  3c.)  was  put  on  the  little  bills  of  fare 
that  Tom  printed,  the  workmen,  almost  in  a  body,  decided  to 
have  dinner  down  at  the  u  Temperance  Hotel.11  instead  of 
either  carrying  their  dinners  or  going  to  town.  When  they  got 
tired  of  beans  and  pork,  Mrs.  Jones  gave  them  "hulled  corn11 
in  such  good-sized  dishes,  and  so  daintily  cooked  and  served, 
that  one  of  her  customers  told  her  she  would  lose  money  in 
furnishing  them  a  dish  like  that  for  five  cents. 

After  some  talk  on  the  matter,  he  told  her  he  had  quite  a 
family,  and  they  had  hard  work  to  make  both  ends  meet.  He 
had  told  his  wife  he  could  get  a  good  dinner  of  corn  and  beans 
for  10  cents,  and  they  could  not  understand  how  it  could  be 
done.  Mrs.  J.  told  him  smilingly  to  buy  a  bushel  each  of  corn, 
beans,  and  wheat,  and  she  would  show  him  how  to  cook  them 
so  that  10  cents  would  come  pretty  near  paying  for  the  mate- 
rials for  his  whole  family. 

Just  here  friend  Merrybanks  came  in  with  samples  of  ma- 


MEKKY BANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  181 

pie  sugar  and  molasses  that  lie  bad  been  making  during  the 
month  of  February. 

••Surely."  said  Mis.  Jones.  tk  this  is  honey." 

■•Xo.it  isn"t  honey.    Taste  it." 

A  small  dish  of  it  was  given  to  all  present,  and  the  exclama- 
tions of  surprise  and  pleasure  were  satisfying.  Each  one  de- 
clared it  to  he  the  most  beautifully  flavored  sweet  that  had 
ever  passed  their  lips.  The  sugar  cakes  were  about  as  white 
as  cream,  and  had  this  same  wonderfully  tine  flavor,  remind- 
ing one  of  buds  and  blossoms,  and  possibly  of  their  earlier 
days,  away  back  in  the  woods  on  the  old  farm. 

"Xow."  said  our  friend.  "  I  have  long  had  the  idea,  that  as 
much  or  more  progress  is  possible  in  making  maple  sugar  and 
syrup,  as  in  getting  nice  honey,  and  a  nice  price  for  it.  This 
cost  me  a  good  deal,  it  is  true:  but  I  just  wish  to  leave  these 
samples  here,  and  let  your  customers  taste  of  them.  The 
syrup  you  are  to  sell  the  same  as  you  do  honey,  which  will  be 
about  SI. -50  per  gallon,  and  these  little  two-ounce  cakes,  for  5 
cents,  which  will  come  to  about  40  cents  per  pound,  you 
are  to  have  one-third  for  selling." 

I  need  hardly  say.  that,  even  in  that  little  community,  both 
sold  readily,  while  the  ordinary  dark  sugar  and  syrup  sold 
slow,  at  usual  prices. 

It  was  Saturday,  toward  evening,  after  a  mild  day.  very  near 
the  first  of  March.  They  had  stopped  work  early  at  the  quar- 
ry, as  they  usually  did  Saturday,  and.  at  John's  urgent  re- 
quest, his  father  and  mother  were  going  over  to  the  sugar- 
camp.  Mrs.  M.  was  to  go  too.  and  the  children  were  just 
boiling  over  with  fun  and  merriment,  as  only  good  school- 
children can  "boil  over."  It  was  an  unusually  pleasant  day 
for  the  season,  and  even  the  mosquitoes  were  buzzing  about. 
As  Mr.  M.  had  a  pretty  fair  roadway  made  down  to  the  woods, 
their  walk  was  a  very  pleasant  one.  Before  they  got  fairly  in- 
to the  woods,  they  heard  some  one  singing.      It  was  our  old 


138  MERRFBANKS  AND  HIS   NEIGHBOR. 

friend;  and  as  they  stopped  a  moment  to  listen,  they  recog- 
nized the  familiar  words,  *k  Only  an  Armor-bearer,1'  that  he 
was  in  the  habit  of  singing  through  the  telephone. 

wi  Mother,  mother  ! "  said  John,  "  don't  you  see  ?  He  has  all 
of  his  sap-pails  covered  with  wooden  covers,  so  there  can't  a 
bit  of  rain-water,  or  a  leaf; or  bug,  get  into  the  sap;  and,  don't 
;you  see,  some  of  the  covers  are  painted  white  and  some  red  ? 
Well,  now  just  look  here !  *' 

At  this,  John  approached  a  tree,  and  lifted  the  cover,  show- 
ing that  one  side  was  white  and  the  other  red. 

••  Look,  mother,  when  he  has  emptied  a  pail,  he  turns  it  the 
other  side  up;  see?  and,  you  see.  he  knows  just  how  many 
pails  he  has  emptied,  and  he  can't  skip  any.    Isn't  it  funny  V  " 

tw  And  just  see.  too.  mother. "  said  Mary,  "  he  has  these  lit- 
tle short  sap-spiles  that  go  right  through  the  side  of  the  pail, 
so  not  a  particle  of  sap  can  spatter  over  or  get  blown  away  by 
the  wind." 

"Yes,"  said  Freddie,  "and  the  spiles  are  made  of  double 
tin.  and  then  dipped  in  tin  all  over,  so  it  can't  rust  anywhere, 
and  make  the  sugar  and  molasses  black.  See  here!,,  and 
Freddie  took  one  out  of  his  pocket,  like  this  : 


MR.   MERRYBANKS5   SAP-SPIL.E. 

They  had  now  got  near  the  boiling-house ;  and  as  pails  were 
scarce,  a  few  tin  pans  were  used,  where  they  could  be  emptied 
often.  One  small  tree  had  only  a  o-cent  pail  hung  to  the 
spout,  and  Freddie  volunteered  the  information  that  this  was 
his  tree,  and  that  it  would  run  a  pailful  in  just  an  hour,  for 
alspell  in  the  forenoon.     His  mother  suggested  he  should  pass 


MEKRVKANKS  AND   HIS  XEIGHIMK. 


133 


the  sap  around ;  but  he  replied  they  would  take  the  dipper 
and  go  down  to  the  "  old  sweet  tree."  for  there  was  one  tree 
sweeter  than  any  other  in  the  woods.  I  told  you  once  before 
(Chap.  XIV.  how  nicely  friend  M.  kept  his  sap-pails  and  all 
his  tinware.  The  sap  from  this  tree  was  relished  and  praised 
by  all.  after  their  rather  long  walk. 

By  this  time  they  were  near  friend  M.,  who  was  gathering 
sap  on  a  sort  of  sled,  or  stoneboat.  carrying  a  clean  tin  can, 
covered  so  no  sap  could  slop  over.  They  noticed  his  pony 
was  trained  to  go  over  a  particular  path,  and  that  he  made 
him  go  on.  or  stop,  by  simply  talking  to  him.  very  much  as  he 

would  talk  to  a  person.  In 
fact,  the  pony  looked  and 
acted  as  if  the  sugar-camp 
belonged  to  his  horseship. 
and  as  if  he  was  proud  to 
have  visitors  admire  it ; 
and  I  don 't  know  but  that 
such  was  the  case;  for.  in 
truth,  he  had  helped  to 
make  almost  every  thing 
about  it. 

"O  pa!'"  said   Freddie, 
••mayn't  I  show  them  how 
he  likes  sap  ?  "      Permis- 
sion was  granted,  and  the 
pony  plainly  showed,  by 
pawing   and  nodding  his 
head,  that  he  knew  that 
sap    is    good,  as  well    as 
anybody.      Shall    I    slmw 
you  how  friend  M.  euip* 


THE  WAY   MR.  MEIIKYBANK: 
TIES    HIS    >AP-PAILS. 


EM  P- 


ties  the  sap.  without  lifting  the  pail  at  all 


134  MRRRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

I  really  can't  show  you  the  painted  cover  to  the  pail,  for 
Freddie  has  got  it,  very  busily  explaining  to  Man7  how  it  is 
made  of  three  thin  boards,  with  the  grain  crossed  to  prevent 
warping.  The  middle  one  is  a  little  larger  than  the  two  out- 
side ones,  and  this  makes  it  fit  down  into  the  pail  so  the  wind 
can  not  blow  the  covers  off.  These  covers  can  be  made  very 
cheaply  at  a  cheese-box  factory. 

••Listen!*"  said  some  one.  All  stood  perfectly  still.  The 
most  apparent  sound  was  a  musical  tinkling,  produced  by  the 
sap  diopping  into  the  pails,  all  over  the  woods.  Some  of  the 
pails  had  just  been  emptied,  and  the  drops,  striking  on  the  tin 
bottom,  made  a  comparatively  loud  note,  while  the  dull  thud, 
and  bubbling  sound  of  those  nearly  full  combined  to  make  a 
pleasant  music.  As  it  echoed  through  the  woods,  more  than 
one  heart  in  that  little  company  was  raised  in  thankfulness 
to  God.    But  John  interrupted, — 

••  Hark  !  1  hear  bees;  I  know  I  do." 

There  was  a  twinkle  in  friend  M."s  eye  as  he  suggested, 
"  Don't  you  think  you  imagine  it.  John?  Perhaps  you  have 
got  •  bee  on  the  brain.'  and  that  is  what  makes  the  buzzing." 

" No,  sir,"  said  John,  with  vehemence;  ''I  know  I  hear 
bees."  At  this  he  started  off;  and  as  he  looked  behind  a 
large  maple-tree  but  a  little  distance  off.  he  fairly  danced  and 
shouted  for  joy.  lie  didn't  shake  any  thing  off  the  table  this 
time,  for  he  stood  on  solid  ground.  Of  course,  the  rest  were 
soon  on  the  spot,  and  the  picture  on  the  next  page  is  what 
they  saw. 

Sure  enough,  there  was  the  pail  bee-hive  that  had  stood  in 
the  greenhouse  ;  but  they  had  been  built  up  so  that  two  pails 
instead  of  one  were  required  to  hold  them  all.  The  sap  was 
conducted  on  to  the  comb;  and  as  it  dripped  down  through, 
the  bees  ordinarily  took  it  all  up:  but  during  the  best  part  of 
the  day.  if  it  was  quite  a  favorable  one.  it  would  come  too  fast 
for  them,  and  drip  into  the  upright  pail  below.     This  pail  was- 


MEKUYBANKS  AND  HIS  XEMiHRoK. 


MK.  MEKHVP.ANKs'    COMBINED   BEE-HIVE,    SAP-PAIL.  AND 
MAPLE-SUGAR    EVAPORATOR. 


furnished  with  a  full  set  of  combs,  also,  so  that  the  sap 
dropped  into  these  combs,  and  could  be  taken  up  by  the  bees 
at  their  pleasure.  The  colony  was  s<>  strong  that  the  bees 
clustered,  in  warm  weather,  clear  down  into  this  third  pail 
also,  so  you  see  they  were  well  prepared  to  take  all  the  sap  a 
large  tree  would  furnish.  You  will  observe  he  has  here  in 
this  case  used  pails,  without  even  removing  the  bails. 

••  Why.  husband,  why  did  you  not  tell  me  of  this  before  ?" 

••  Well.  I  did  not  know  how  it  would  work,  for  one  thing; 
and  for  another.  I  thought  you  could  see  it  better  than  I  could 
tell  it.  could  you  not  ?" 

••  Why.  Mr.  M.,"  said  John's  mother,  "you  do  not  mean  to 
say  that  nice  syrup  and  sugar  came  from  this  bee-hive  V  " 

"No.  it  did  not;  it  was  made  in  the  pan  1  will  show  you 
presently.  I  expect  to  get  nicer  maple  syrup  from  this  hive 
than  any  thing  that  has  been  seen  yet." 


136 


MEKRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 


Just  here.  Tom,  the  doctor's  boy,  came  with  some  labels  he 
had  been  printing  for  John's  10-cent  pails  of  honey.  John 
thought  he  would  like  some  kind  of  a  picture  on  the  labels, 
and  Tom  thought  he  could  engrave  it.  Here  is  a  picture  of 
the  sample  label  he  showed  them,  and  the  words  he  had 
printed  under  it. 


THE    LABELS   TOM    PRINTED    FOR  .JOHN. 

Of  course,  there  was  a  big  laugh  all  round  at  ""Tom's  pic- 
ture, "  and  after  they  had  laughed,  they  went  up  and  had 
some  warm  sugar.  If  I  should  tell  you  how  they  got  some 
snow,  and  made  wax,  and  all  that  sort  of  thing,  I  am  afraid  it 
would  make  you  feel  bad  because  you  were  not  there  too ;  so 
I  think  I  won't  say  any  thing  about  it. 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  187 

CHAPTER  XXVIII. 

Let  all  thiug-s  be  done  decently  and  in  order.— I.  COK.  14:  40. 

TOM'S  printing-office  was  a  sort  of  shed  adjoining  the  doc- 
tor's office  ;  and,  in  fact,  it  had  been  used  as  a  coal-shed 
until  Tom  petitioned  to  have  it  for  his  office.  Tom  had 
b.  very  good  mother,  and,  while  I  think  of  it,  it  occurs  to  me 
that  almost  all  the  mothers  in  Onionville  were  good  women. 
Is  such  the  case  in  your  neighborhood  V  Well,  Tom  was  natu- 
rally rather  neat  in  his  habits,  or,  at  least,  folks  said  so  ;  but 
it  may  be,  after  all,  that  it  was  the  effect,  greatly,  of  his  moth- 
er's early  training.  A  lot  of  boys  proposed,  one  night  after 
school,  to  go  and  visit  his  office.  Tom  agreed,  but  it  was  evi- 
dent from  his  manner  that  he  was  not  greatly  pleased  with  the 
idea.  When  rallied  in  regard  to  his  not  giving  a  very  cordial 
invitation  he  replied.  "  Why.  the  truth  of  it  is,  boys,  my  office, 
even  if  it  doesn't  amount  to  much,  is  clean  and  in  nice  order ; 
and  if  you  all  go  in  there  with  muddy  feet  you  will  make  me  a 
lot  of  work  scrubbing  it  out  again ;  and  folks  who  pick  up 
things  and  handle  them,  very  often  make  me  a  great  deal  of 
trouble.'* 

This  raised  a  big  laugh.  "  Why,  how  do  you  ever  expect 
folks  to  trade  with  you* if  they  don't  ever  go  into  your  of- 
fice ?"  said  one. 

Tom  looked  a  little  embarrassed,  but  finally  replied,  "  Why, 
I  supposed  you  were  going  only  for  the  fun  of  it,  and  custom- 
ers do  not  often  come  to  my  office  in  a  big  crowd." 

John  here  interposed,  that  they  would  all  clean  their  feet  so 
nicely  that  no  one  would  know  they  had  been  there,  from  the 
looks  of  the  floor;  but  Tom  was  a  little  incredulous  as  he 
glanced  at  the  great  heavy  muddy  boots  of  the  greater  part  of 
them.    However,  they  went  to  a  nice  grassy  plot.  and.  imdei 


138  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

John's  supervision,  they  cleaned  their  feet  pretty  well ;  and  as- 
a  sidewalk  went  clear  up  to  the  otfice,  they  got  in  without  soil- 
ing the  clean  sanded  Moor  very  much.  As  it  was  rather  cool- 
weather,  Tom  asked  them  all  to  be  seated  on  a  bench  at  one 
side  of  the  room,  and  told  them  he  would  make  a  fire.  At  this 
a  boy,  whom  no  one  liked  very  well,  jumped  up  and  exclaim- 
ed. "Oh!  I'll  build  the  fire,  and  you  can  go  on  with  the 
printing." 

••  No."  objected  Tom.  who  was  getting  a  little  nervous, 
kt  you  don't  know  how.     I  would  rather  do  it  myself.*' 

Tom  meant  by  this  that  Bob  didn't  know  how  he  himself 
managed  to  build  fires,  and  how  he  preferred  to  have  it  done  ; 
not  that  he  did  not  know  how  to  start  a  fire  in  a  stove,  in  a 
general  way.  How  many  misunderstandings  come  out  of 
just  such  trifles,  and  how  often  we  hear  people  declaring  they 
have  been  abused  and  insulted,  when  nothing  of  the  kind  was 
ever  thought  of ! 

••  Do  you  mean  to  say.  sir."  said  Bob,  all  in  a  blaze.  "  that  I 
am  a  fool  ?  " 

Here  the  rest  interposed,  and  told  Bob  to  sit  down  and  let 
Tom  do  as  he  pleased  in  his  own  shop.  Tom  also  explained 
that  he  objected,  because  people  usually  dropped  coal  and 
shavings  on  the  floor,  and  that  it  was  more  bother  to  clean  up 
after  them  than  to  do  it  himself  ;  but  as  Bob  still  declared  he 
could  do  it  as  well  as  anybody,  Tom  consented  to  let  him  try, 
and  the  rest  all  watched  while  he  did  it.  Back  of  the  stove 
stood  a  pail  of  coal,  and  also  one  of  short  sticks  and  shavings 
from  the  sawmill.  Bob  opened  the  stove-door  and  pushed  the 
unburned  coals  back  and  made  a  good  place  for  the  kindlings  ; 
and  in  doing  so  he  blackened  his  fingers  and  the  wristbands  to* 
his  shirt  in  a  way  that  would  certainly  make  his  mother  much 
work.  lie  next,  with  both  hands,  took  a  great  lot  of  shavings 
from  the  kindling-pail,  and  placed  them  in  the  stove :  but  as 
he  raised  them  out  of  the  pail,  the  fine  shavings  dropped  over 


MERRY!  ANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  139 

the  sides,  and  sprinkled  all  the  way  from  the  pail  to  the  floor. 
As  this  raised  a  big  laugh,  he  declared  there  couldn't  anybody 
put  shavings  in  the  stove  without  letting  at  least  a  little  dust 
(?   get  on  the  door. 

"  Shall  I  show  you  how  I  it  ?  "  said  Tom. 

•"  How  do  you  do  it  ?  "  replied  Bob. 

"  Just  this  way;  "  and.  suiting  the  action  to  the  word.  Tom 
took  the  pail  of  shavings,  held  it  up  to  the  door  of  the  stove, 
and  put  in  the  handful  without  the  possibility  of  a  single  fiber 
•dropping.  ■•  Besides."  resumed  Tom.  "  you  have  put  in  about 
four  times  as  much  as  I  do  :  for  I  find  it  no  light  chore  to 
bring  it  from  the  sawmill." 

Bob  next  undertook  to  put  in  the  coal ;  but  as  the  coal-pail 
was  nearly  two  yards  from  the  stove-door  he  had  to  travel 
hack  and  forth  with  each  Shovelful ;  and  before  he  had  the 
•stove  well  filled,  little  bits  of  coal  had  fallen  off  the  shovel, 
making  the  floor  look  quite  untidy.  To  make  matters  worse, 
in  walking  back  and  forth  he  had  stepped  on  these  little  bits, 
and  ground  them  into  powder  and  into  the  floor.  He  also,  in 
putting  in  the  last  shovelful,  bumped  it  against  the  stove- 
door,  and  quite  a  lot  of  coal  fell  on  the  ledge  of  the  stove.  The 
boys  laughed,  but  Tom  was  getting  pretty  nearly  angry. 

••  Why  did  you  not  carry  the  coal-pail  up  to  the  stove-door, 
as  I  showed  you  V  "  said  he. 

"Why.  that  was  the  way  you  said  put  in  kindling.  I'll 
leave  it  to  the  rest,  if  you  said  a  word  about  putting  in  coal 
that  way.  You  needn't  be  so  nice  about  your  printing-shop. 
A  lattle  coal  on  the  floor  doesn't  do  any  hurt,  any  way." 

Just  at  this  moment  his  eye  rested  on  a  clean  new  little 
broom  hanging  up  against  the  wall,  and  beside  it  a  pretty 
little  dust-pan.  The  broom  had  a  ring  screwed  in  the  top, 
and  hung  by  it  OD  a  stout  screw  put  into  the  wall.  "  Here  ;  I 
can  sweep  it  all  up  for  you  in  no  time."  He  first  swept  the 
floor;  and  in  so  doing  lie  scattered  the  bits  of  coal  further, 


140  MEKRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

and  crunched  more  of  them  under  his  boots.  After  this  was 
done,  he  noticed  the  coal  on  the  stove-ledge  ;  and  in  sweeping 
this  off  he  got  it  all  over  the  floor  again,  and  mashed  some 
more  under  his  feet.  When  he  got  done  he  put  the  dust-pan 
in  the  sink,  instead  of  hanging  it  on  its  nail,  and  stood  the 
broom  up  in  a  corner.  The  new  white  broomstick  was  also 
marred  by  the  sooty  marks  of  his  lingers.  By  this  time  he 
was  ready  to  light  the  fire ;  but  in  getting  a  match  out  of  the 
neat  little  match-safe  he  knocked  them  down  and  spilled  them 
all ;  and  in  picking  them  up  he  left  three  or  four  that  he  did 
not  happen  to  see.  Back  of  the  stove  was  a  clean  place  of 
whitewashed  wall,  and  on  this  he  scratched  his  match,  instead 
of  on  the  sanded  surface  on  purpose,  on  the  match-safe.  A 
long  black  streak  was  left  on  the  wall  ;  and  as  the  phosphorus 
flew  off  and  didn't  light  the  match,  he  threw  it  on  the  floor 
and  tried  another.  The  fire  was  finally  lighted,  and  Bob 
turned  round  to  see  what  all  the  rest  were  looking  at.  Tom, 
after  glancing  at  things,  put  the  dust-pan  and  broom  in  their 
places,  picked  up  the  good  and  bad  matches,  looked  ruefully 
at  his  floor,  and  then  resumed  his  work  with  the  presses.  My 
friends,  are  you  sure  you  know  how  to  build  a  tire  any  better 
than  Bob  did  V 

You  may  think  I  am  needlessly  particular  in  going  into  all 
these  little  details ;  but,  my  friends,  it  is  these  little  things 
that  make  the  difference  between  eternal  life  and  eternal 
ruin.  A  world  of  unhappy  people  are  to-day  drifting  about 
with  nothing  to  do,  or  working  at  very  small  pay,  just  because 
they  started  and  went  through  life  like  poor  friend  Bob.  A 
boy  who  will  build  a  fire,  and  put  away  every  thing  so  careful- 
ly you  would  not  know  a  "boy"  had  been  about,  I  could 
easily  pay  a  dollar  a  day,  where  I  could  not  give  over  fifty 
cents  to  one  who  goes  to  work  at  every  thing  as  Bob  did.  In 
fact,  to  tell  the  plain  truth,  if  I  had  no  regard  for  the  poor 
boy's  future  I  would  not  have  one  like  Bob  in  our  establish- 


MEKKYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  1« 

merit  at  any  price.  We  all  like  neat,  clean,  and  pleasant 
homes,  and  pleasant  places  of  business:  and  it  is  right  we 
should  like  them,  for  no  one  can  do  nice  work  in  a  disorderly 
place.  You  need  not  tell  me  that  children  can  not  be  taught 
to  be  orderly  and  accurate,  or  that  they  do  not  enjoy  them- 
selves better  when  so  taught,  for  I  have  have  had  about  as 
much  experience  with  them  as  anybody,  and  I  do  not  believe 
they  think  me  a  bard  taskmaster  either. 

The  matter  of  the  fire  being  now  nicely  arranged,  Tom  was 
requested  to  print  something,  just  to  show  them  how  he  did 
it.  He  had  only  one  job  on  hand,  andthis  was  some  cards  for 
the  superintendent  of  their  Sunday-school.  John  and  one 
other  boy  were  the  only  ones  of  those  present  who  were  Sun- 
day-school scholars.    This  is  what  was  to  be  on  the  card  : 

y  ft  ft  ft  ft  ft  ft  ft  A  A  Aft  A  ft  ft  «  ft  AAAAAAAAA*  Aft**  «fl 

4  Jesus,  teach  me  net  to  swear  : 

This  sHa.ll  be  my  earnest  prayer  ; 
4  Jill  day  long,  at  work  or  play, 

4  Jesvis,  teach  me  what  to  say- 

As  a  printed  copy  was  given  him,  Tom  had  little  trouble  in 
setting  it  up.  so  it  read  just  like  the  original.  After  he  had 
pronounced  it  all  right,  the  copy  was  given  the  rest  to  read, 
until  all  agreed  it  was  exactly  right.   Here  is  the  press  he  used. 

After  the  type  wrere  fastened  by 
means  of  little  blocks  called "''  furni- 
ture,'1 exactly  in  the  middle  of  the 
iron  frame  called  a  "  chase.'1  sever- 
al sheets  of  blank  paper  were  fas- 
tened over  the  "tympan,1*  or  part 
that  moves  up  against  the  type,  and 
a  very  little  ink  was  then  rolled 
over  the  face  of  the  type.  The  first 
impression  would,  you  see.  be  right 


142 


MEKKYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 


on  these  sheets  of  paper,  and  it  was  then  easy  to  see  where  to 
stick  some  pins,  against  which  to  rest  the  cards,  that  they 
might  he  printed  exactly  in  the  middle,  and  square.  After 
several  times  trying,  the  k-  register."  as  it  is  called,  was  right. 
Now,  it  was  found  that  some  of  the  letters  were  not  as  clear 
and  plain  as  others.  This  was  adjusted  by  changing  the  im- 
pression a  little,  by  means  of  the  proper  screws,  and  then  Tom 
took  down  from  a  shelf  a  pretty  little  paper  box,  that,  when 
opened,  was  found  to  contain  nice  little  cards,  put  up  in  bun- 
dles of  fifty  each,  with  a  little  paper  band  around  each.  Did 
you  never  notice  how  niSe  and  clean  such  goods  are  when  they 
come  from  the  factory  ?  You  may  think  your  hands  are  pret- 
ty clean ;  but  if  you  rest  even  your  ringers  on  one  of  these 
snow-white  cards  it  leaves  a  mark,  and  the  card  is  spoiled. 
How  easy  it  is  to  make  mischief  in  this  world,  and  without 
any  intention  of  so  doing,  either!  Bob  found  it  out;  for  al- 
most as  soon  as  the  cover  was  off  the  box  he  picked  up  one 
of  the  bundles  of  cards,  soiling  wherever  his  fingers  touched 
them,  tore  off  the  neat  little  paper  band,  and  threw  it  on  the 
floor. 

"Look  "e  here,  old  feller,"  said  Tom,  uwe  don't  throw 
things  on  the  floor  in  this  shop,  I  would  have  you  under- 
stand. " 

"  Why  !  just  that  little  bit  of  paper  ? 
I  should  like  to  know  what  you  can  do 
with  it." 

u  Why,  it's  waste  paper,  and  it  goes 
into  the  waste-paper  basket."  And 
Tom  pointed  his  finger  to  a  pretty  lit- 
tle basket,  made  of  willow.  Would  you 
like  to  see  it  ?    Here  it  is. 

Bob  looked  around  at  the  rest ;  but  as 
no  one  seemed  to  think  he  had  any  just 


roars  wastk-v.wkr  baskkt. 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  14:< 

cause  for  complaint,  he  picked  up  the  little  scrap  of  paper  and 
placed  it  in  the  little  basket,  saying.  "  May  be  there  is  some- 
thing else  you  would  like  to  have  a  fellow  do.'* 

All  were  good-natured  by  this  time,  and  Tom  very  quietly 
said,  "  Yes,  Bob.  there  is  one  other  thing  I  should  like  you  to 
do.     Will  you  do  it  ?" 

"  I  will  if  I  can  ;  talk  it  out.** 

"If  you  are  going  to  help  me  print,  wash  your  hands,  and 
make  them  so  clean  they  won't  leave  a  mark  on  a  clean  card.'" 
Bob  did  it :  and  as  the  rest  were  all  watching  him,  he  actually 
hung  the  towel  on  the  right  hook,  put  the  soap  back  in  the 
soap-stand,  and  rinsed  out  the  new  tin  wash-basin,  and  hung 
it  up  on  the  nail  where  he  found  it.  After  trying  his  finger 
across  a  clean  white  card,  to  be  sure  it  would  not  soil  it.  Tom 
allowed  him  to  finish  one  pack  of  cards  in  gold  bronze.  The 
cards  for  this  purpose  were  of  a  steel  blue,  as  it  is  called,  to 
contrast  better  with  gold.  An  ounce  of  bronze,  costing  only 
15  cents,  will  do  for  a  great  number  of  labels.  It  is  dusted 
over  the  print  just  as  it  comes  from  the  press,  while  the  ink 
is  yet  fresh  and  sticky,  a  ball  of  soft  cotton  being  used  to  put 
it  on  with.  The  bronze  sticks  to  the  ink,  but  falls  right  off 
from  the  smooth  paper,  and  so  we  have  the  words  in  "  letters 
of  gold."  If  I  am  right,  both  the  two  boys  who  were  at  work 
on  that  little  card  needed  those  words,  and  it  may  be  the  su- 
perintendent's little  verse  in  letters  of  gold  started  good;  seed 
that  day,  even  before  the  little  cards  got  out  of  the  printing- 
office.  Would  you  like  a  few  of  those  cards,  my  friend  V 
Well,  you  just  mention  it,  when  you  are  writing  us,  and  we 
will  send  you  some. 

Bob  enjoyed  the  work  so  much  that  he  declared  he  was  go- 
ing to  work  hard  and  earn  money,  and  have  one  too.  WTieD 
he  asked  the  very  cheapest  that  any  kind  of  a  printing-press 
could  be  had  for,  Tom  showed  him  a  picture  of  one  for  only 
a  dollar,  that  would  print  a  card  very  well.     It  was  very  soon 


144  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

arranged  that  Bob  should  help  him  in  the  office  at  5  cents  an 
hour,  until  he  could  buy  it. 

At  this  point,  some  of  the  boys  overhearing  something 
about  some  new  things  that  Mr.  Merrybanks  had  just  invent- 
ed, the  whole  lot  started  off  to  go  and  see  them.  The  boys  all 
knew  he  would  readily  show  and  explain  every  thing  to  them, 
if  they  only  asked  him,  and  so  the  proposal  met  with  favor  at 
once,  as  soon  as  Tom  could  put  away  his  bronze,  wash  his 
type,  and  put  every  thing  in  apple-pie  order.  In  answer  to 
a  question,  he  replied  that  he  usually  washed  his  type  with 
benzine;  but  that  when  he  wished  to  get  it  real  clean,  he 
used  concentrated  lye,  which  he  kept  always  ready  for  use,  in 
a  little  black  jug  under  the  sink. 

The  first  thing  that  pleased  the  boys  was  a  new  smoker 
friend  M.  had  just  got.  It  cost  him  only  50  cents,  and  yet  it 
was  lighted  with  a  match,  and  would  throw  smoke  like  a  little 
fire-engyie.    Here  is  a  picture  of  it. 


MR.   MERRYBANKS     FIFTY-CENT   SMOKER. 

The  next  thing  John  wanted  them  to  see  was  a  little  fence 
to  put  before  the  entrances  to  the  bee-hives,  that  would  let 
the  worker -bees  through,  but    not   the  drones  or  queens. 


MERRYUANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 


145 


Friend  M.  bad  got  this  from  the  ^reat  bee-man  of  Canada, 
Mr.  D.  A.  Jones.  As  John  was  not  quite  able  to  explain  it 
fully.  Freddy  volunteered  to  read  all  about  it  to  them  in  the 
American  Agriculturist,  and  this  is  what  he  read  : — 

At  the  meeting  of  the  National  Bee-Keepers'  Society,  at  Lexington, 
Ky..  Mr.  D.  A.  Jones  suggested  a  way  to  control,  in  part  at  least,  the  mat- 
ing on  the  drone  side.  This  is  accomplished  by  the  use  of  perforated  zinc 
as  entrance-guards  to  the  hives.  These  guards  are  ten  inches  long,  and 
each  guard  is  a  box  with  the  bottom  and  one  side  removed.  A  cross-sec- 
tion of  the  box  is  one  inch  square.  The  holes  in  this  zinc  are  rectangu- 
lar. 5-32  of  an  inch  wide  by  9-16  long.  The  zinc  occupies  about  as  much 
space  as  that  occupied  by  the  holes;  that  is,  about  one-half  of  the  metal 
is  cut  away.  These  holes,  while  they  permit  the  workers  to  pass  freely 
through,  are  a  perfect  bar  to  the  drones  and  the  queen.  Now,  by  placing 
this  guard  with  the  wanting  side  against  the  end  or  side  of  the  hive,  be- 


BEE-GUAKD. 


fore  the  entrance,  we  have  a  perfect  barrier  to  the  drones  and  the  queen, 
while  the  workers  may  pass  with  freedom. 

HOW   TO   USE   THE   GUARDS. 

By  placing  these  guards  before  the  hives,  in  our  own  and  near  neigh- 
bors' apiaries,  we  may  preclude  the  flight  of  all  such  drones  as  are  not 
desired  to  meet  the  queens.  Of  course,  if  there  are  wild  bees  in  the  vi- 
cinity, as  is  always  the  case  if  there  are  forests  near  by.  then  this  meth- 
od is  only  a  help,  not  a  sure  preventive,  of  undesirable  mating.  A  still 
better  way  to  use  guards  is,  to  let  the  drones  fly  from  all  but  the  very 
best  colonies  on  such  days  as  there  are  no  young  queens  to  fly  out,  and 
about  one  or  two  o'clock  put  all  the  guards  at  the  entrances  of  the 
hives,  and  at  night,  when  the  bees  are  in  their  hives,  kill  the  drones. 
The  drones  should  always  be  kept  down,  either  by  this  method  or  by  cut- 
ting out  the  unhatched  drone-brood,  as  they  consume  a  great  amount  of 
honey,  and  are  expensive  and  worthless  appendages  to  any  hive.  I  per- 
mit drones  in  my  choicest  hives  only. 


146  MERKYBANKS  AND  HIS   NEICiiBOK. 

John's  father  here  came  over  to  show  something  he  had 
studied  up,  and  to  ask  friend  M.  to  help  him  study  up  ma- 
chinery for  making  them  rapidly.  They  had  wintered  their 
bees  all  right,  like  everybody  else,  you  know,  and  so  they  were 
thinking  of  selling  bees.  Here  is 
the  board  he  had  in  his  hand. 

You  will  notice  the  strip  of  board 
has  three  grooves  in  it.  Well,  sup- 
pose such  a  board  were  slipped  into 
each  end  of  a  three-frame  nucleus 
hive.  If  the  grooves  were  just  the 
^Stll^T^VllJA^  ri^t  depth  and  width,  the  frames 
fob  shipment.  would   slide  right  down   in   them, 

and  then  they  would  be  a  fixture,  so  far  as  any  possible 
shucking  about  is  concerned.  To  fasten  the  frames  of  a 
whole  colony,  six  such  boards  are  used,  putting  in  9  combs  in- 
stead of  10.  These  boards  do  away  with  all  wedges,  or  mash- 
ing bees,  and  the  frames  can  be  pushed  down  into  these 
grooves,  w.hen  covered  with  bees,  almost  as  easily  as  theyfcan 
be  hung  in  the  hives.  Where  bees  and  combs  of  brood  are  to 
be  sent  in  a  shipping-box.  without  any  hives,  these  boards 
form  the  end  of  the  shipping-box — thin  stuff  making  the  sides, 
and  wire  cloth  covering  top  and  bottom.  They  decided  that, 
with  machinery,  they  could  make  boards  like  the  one  in  the 
picture  for  3  cents  each,  or  $2.-50  per  hundred. 

"  O  Mr.  Merry  banks  ! "  said  Mary,  ,l  how  did  the  bees  get 
along  making  honey  out  of  the  sap  V  " 

"  Why,  my  little  girl,  they  got  along  pretty  well,  only  they 
found  the  ;  feed  '  a  little  '  thin '." 

"  And,  oh  !  don't  you  believe  ?  ?'  said  Freddie,  "  Uncle  Billy 
is  going  to  build  a  mill  with  all  those  stones  at  the  quarry." 


MERKYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 


CHAPTER   XXIX. 

Fees*  thou   a  man  diligent  in   his  business  ?     He  shall  stand  before 
kintrs:  he  shall  not  stand  before  mean  men.— Pkov.  22:29. 

TT  was  six  o'clock  in  the  morning,  and  the  Jones  family 
were  gathering  around  the  breakfast-tal>le.  A  year  ago 
they  did  not  have  breakfast  at  six  o'clock,  unless,  indeed, 
it  was  for  Mrs.  Jones  to  get  some  sort  of  a  cold  hasty  bite  be- 
fore she  went  at  her  washing,  and  then  the  children  and  her 
husband  came  stringing  along  for  their  breakfast  whenever 
they  felt  inclined.  The  breakfast,  take  it  altogether,  was  an 
uncomfortable  affair,  and  seemed  to  all  parties  a  sort  of  nec- 
essary evil.  The  children  were  seldom  half  dressed,  and  I 
fear  many  times  would  not  have  had  their  faces  washed  had 
not  the  poor  mother  insisted  on  it.  Mr.  Jones  used  to  wash 
his  face,  I  believe;  but  as  he  seldom  got  up  early,  he  did  not 
feel  very  well  pleased  with  himself  nor  anybody  else,  and  the 
feeling  that  he  had  probably  hindered  his  wife  by  his  being 
so  late  in  getting  up  did  not  help  matters  very  much.  As  his 
pipe  seemed  the  best  thing  to  rouse  him  up  and  make  him  for- 
get these  uncomfortable  feelings,  he  usually  hurried  through 
with  his  meal  so  he  could  get  hold  of  that.  Thank  (rod.  it  is 
not  so  this  bright  spring  morning:  for  although  it  is  only  six, 
as  I  told  you,  all  are  up  and  dressed,  and  looking  pleasant, 
tidy,  and  happy.  Mrs.  Jones  isn't  tired,  because  they  have 
all  helped  her  bear  the  burdens  of  the  breakfast.  You 
might  think  Mary  is  rather  young  to  be  up  so  early :  but  as 
she  goes  to  bed  about  as  soon  as  it  is  fairly  dark,  she  has  about 
as  much  sleep  as  she  used  to  have  the  old  way.  The  goods 
they  keep  for  sale  are  already  out  on  their  stands  each  side  of 
the  door,  and  it  would  be  nothing  strange  if  they  should  have 
a  customer  before  they  get  quite  through  with  breakfast.     In 


148  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

that  case,  neither  the  father  nor  mother  would  have  to  get  upr 
for  Mary  and  John  would  be  on  a  strife  to  see  which  should 
wait  on  the  customer  first. 

They  take  their  seats  at  the  table,  and  yet  no  one  makes  any 
movement  to  help  himself  to  the  food,  nor  even  so  much  as 
move  a  dish,  for  that  matter,  for  God's  blessing  must  first  be 
asked  over  the  morning  meal.  'In  this  little  feature  alone 
there  was  a  wonderful  difference  over  the  old  way.  It  is  true, 
that  ofttimes  some  one  of  them  was  unavoidably  hindered ; 
but  if  the  hindrance  was  not  to  exceed  a  few  minutes,  all 
hands  sat  and  waited.  If  breakfast  was  not  quite  ready,  Mr. 
Jones  had  a  way  of  reading  in  the  Sunday- School  Times  about 
the  lesson  for  next  Sabbath,  and  who  shall  say  his  time  was 
wasted  ?  Very  often  he  struck  some  bright  thought  (did  it 
ever  occur  to  you  how  easily  one  catches  bright  thoughts  after 
his  face  is  washed,  just  before  breakfast  ?)  that  made  the 
theme  of  discussion  for  all  at  the  morning  meal.  The  words 
he  usually  used  in  asking  a  blessing  were  often  homely  ones ; 
and  many  who  have  a  better  command  of  language  than  he 
had,  might  have  smiled  at  such  common -place  words;  but 
they  were  his  own,  and  the  best  he  had.  As  nearly  as  I  can 
tell,  it  was  something  like  this  : 

"Our  Father  who  art  in  heaven,  we  thank  thee  for  this- 
happy  little  home  thou  hast  given  us,  and  for  this  our  morn- 
ing meal.  May  thy  blessing  rest  upon  the  food  before  us,  and 
may  thy  loving  care  be  with  us  all,  through  all  the  duties  and 
tasks  of  the  day.    Amen." 

It  was  so  short  and  simple  that  no  one  ever  wearied  of  its 
length,  and  yet  the  words,  so  few  and  plain,  were  such  that 
all  could  mentally  assent,  even  if  they  did  not  outwardly  say 
amen.  The  Jones  family  did  not  always  feel  pleasant  about 
every  thing  early  in  the  morning,  any  more  than  the  folks  do 
who  live  at  our  house  or  your  house ;  but  the  thought  of  this 
simple  little  blessing  was  a  check,  even  before  it  had  been 


MRRRY1  AN  KB  AND  HIS  NKIGHDOR  14*f 

pronounced,  and  the  memory  of  it  was  a  check  after  it  had 
been  pronounced. 

During  the  meal  the  subject  came  up  as  to  what  should  be 
planted  on  their  little  patch  of  ground  this  season.  Perhaps 
nothing  had  brought  them  so  much  money  as  the  crop  of 
white  beans,  for  the  o-cent  dishes  of  baked  beans  had  got  to 
be  an  established  article  of  trade  with  the  men  working  on 
the  new  mill.  It  was  decided  that  every  foot  of  ground  must 
be  made  to  produce  something;  and  then  Mr.  Jones  remarked, 
that  they  must  make  the  ground  rich,  and  to  that  end  a  com- 
post heap  was  to  be  started,  and  every  scrap  of  everything 
that  could  be  converted  into  manure  was  to  be  put  on  it.  even 
to  the  soapsuds  and  dish-water. 

"O  mother!"  said  Mary.  "Mr.  Merrybanks  has  got  a 
peach-tree  right  near  the  house,  and  they  always  pour  soap- 
suds around  it,  and  it  bears  a  bushel  of  peaches  every  year, 
and  it's  only  a  little  tree  too." 

•k  Oh,  yes ! "  said  John.  "  and  he  carries  all  the  ashes  and 
puts  around  the  rest  of  his  peach-trees,  for  he  says  it  keeps 
the  worms  away.  Right  close  to  the  ground,  he  showred  me 
where  they  ate  into  the  bark,  and  made  the  gum  run  out:  and 
he  said  if  we  kept  ashes  around  the  roots,  there  would  never 
be  any  gum  there;  and,  O  father!  don't  you  believe  he  has 
some  nice  peach-tree  honey  ! " 

''Yes,"  said  the  father,  "and  we  must  have  some  peach- 
trees  around  our  place,  and  some  raspberries  and  strawber- 
ries; and,  if  mother  is  willing,  we  will  go  right  about  it  this 
morning." 

Inasmuch  as  they  all  declared  they  liked  to  raise  berries, 
pick  berries,  and  eat  berries,  it  was  decided  their  little  planta- 
tion was  to  be  devoted  to  fruits,  bees,  vegetables.— 

"And  tinware!"  suggested  Mary. 

By  this  time,  as  all  had  finished  their  meal,  the  father  took 
the  little  worn  Bible  and  read  a  chapter,  concluding  with  the 


15U  MERKYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

little  text  at  the  head  of  our  talk  to-day  ;  and  as  they  all  knelt, 
he  asked  God  to  bless  their  work,  and  help  them  to  be  dili- 
gent, not  only  with  their  bees,  fruits,  and  vegetables,  but  also 
in  following  his  law  as  laid  down  in  the  book  they  had  just 
read.  After  this,  all  were  ready  for  work,  and  it  wasn't  quite 
7  o'clock  either.  Who  shall  say  it  was  time  wasted  ?  They 
were  simply  beginning  the  day  •'decently  and  in  order."  as 
directed  in  our  little  text  of  the  last  chapter. 


CHAPTER   XXX. 

And  whosoever  will  be  chief  among-  you.  let  him  be  your  servant.— 
Watt.  20:27. 

PERHAPS  no  one  in  Onionville  was  more  astonished  than 
John's  mother,  when  first  told  there  was  talk  of  having 
her  for  postmistress.  God  had  been  sending  blessings 
•day  by  day,  it  seemed,  almost  from  the  very  time  when  she 
was  led  by  the  little  Sunday-school  book  to  hunt  up  and  read 
her  long-neglected  Bible.  It  was  not  only  that  she  read  the 
Bible,  but  that  she  put  its  teachings  into  practice ;  and  al- 
though she  had  never  thought  of  it,  she  had  been  uncon- 
sciously, in  her  humble  way,  following  her  Savior  by  serving, 
or  becoming  a  servant  of  the  people  of  the  neighborhood  ;  she 
had  also  been  happy  in  this  quiet  service,  for  it  was  serving 
the  Master  all  the  same,  even  if  she  was  not  aware  of  it.  Do 
you  remember. 

For  I  was  a  hungered,  and  ye  gave  me  meat:  I  was  thirsty,  and  ye 
gave  me  drink ;  T  was  a  stranger,  and  ye  took  me  in  ?— Matt.  25: 37. 

Not  only  wras  her  Savior  aware  of  it,  but  the  people  round 
About  were  beginning  to  observe  her  faithful,  honest,  careful 
ways,  and  thus  it  came  about  that  they  preferred  to  trust 
their  mails  in  her  hands,  rather  than  any  other  in  the  whole 


MBBBTBANK8  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  151 

neighborhood.  The  spirit  of  Christ  can  not  be  hid ;  and  when 
any  one  says  to  himself  he  is  going  to  be  a  Christian  in  his 
own  way,  and  not  have  anybody  know  it,  he  will  assuredly 
fail.  It  can  not  be  done  ;  for  if  you  are  faithful,  even  moder- 
ately so,  people  will  find  it  out.  and  you  will  be  sought  out 
and  wanted  in  a  multitude  of  ways. 

Of  course  the  postoffice  was  a  great  help  to  the  pie  and  tin- 
ware trade,  and  pretty  soon  the  combined  efforts  of  the  whole 
family  were  insufficient  to  keep  a  stock  of  goods  on  hand.  At 
this  crisis  of  affairs  the  matter  was  talked  over  with  friend 
Merrybanks,  as  he  was  always  as  much  interested  (or  a  little 
more  if  possible)  as  if  it  were  all  his  own  instead  of  his 
neighbors*. 

•'Xow,  I'll  tell  you  what,"  said  he,  after  a  little  thought. 
"There  is  Aunt  Lucinda.  who  is  trying  hard  to  support  her- 
self by  doing  even"  thing  she  can  hud  to  do.  and  she  will  help 
to  make  the  pies;  and  if  she  can't  make  the  small  tinware, 
and  drive  nails  enough  to  make  knife -boxes  and  such  like, 
why.  then  I'm  mistaken,  that's  ail." 

Here  he  began  feeling  in  his  pocket  for  something. 

While  they  were  talking,  a  man  came  in  and  wanted  three 
pies  and  half  a  dozen  boiled  eggs,  put  into  a  paper  bag.  so  he 
could  carry  them  handily  where  he  was  going  to  work.  Mary 
waited  on  him  :  but  as  all  would  not  go  into  one  paper  bag, 
she  put  them  into  two.  and.  some  little  time  after  the  man 
had  gone,  one  of  the  bags  was  discovered  right  where  he  set 
it  down  to  make  change. 

•'It  does  seem  strange."  said  Mr.  Jones,  "that  people  will 
so  often  buy  things  and  go  off  without  them." 

Mr.  Merrybaoks,  without  answering,  directed  John  to  take 
the  bag  and  hasten  after  him :  but  as  he  had  gone  some  dis- 
tance. John  had  quite  a  run  to  catch  him  ;  and  as  he  jolted 
the  bag  in  running,  the  eggs  broke  through  and  had  to  be 
picked  up  and  delivered  to  him  in  any  thing  but  a  presenta- 


152  MEHRYBANKS  AND  HIS' NEIGHBOR. 

ble  condition.  John  stubbed  his  toe  besides;  and  when  he 
returned,  out  of  breath,  he  was  ready  to  take  up  his  father's 
remark,  and  declare  that  anybody  who  forgets  to  take  the 
things  he  pays  for  ought  to  go  without  them.  ""  I  am  sure  I 
don't  want  to  chase  after  them,'1  remarked  he. 

"Look  here,  my  boy.**  said  neighbor  M.,  "did  you  never 
forget  any  thing  after  you  had  paid  for  it  V  "* 

"  I  know  of  one  or  two  things  lie  forgot,  that  he  didn't  pay 
for,"  chimed  in  Mary,  with  a  twinkle  in  her  eye. 

John  hung  his  head  a  little,  for  he  knew  he  was  the  most 
forgetful  one  of  all  of  them.     Neighbor  M.  went  on,— 

"If  you  wish  to  build  up  a  great  business,  John,  and  I 
really  hope  and  pray  you  may,  your  first  lesson  to  learn  is,  to 
be  servant  of  the  people.  Your  customers  honor  you  with 
their  patronage,  and  it  is  your  place  to  repay  them  with  the 
kindest  attention  and  civility  you  can  give  them.  Look  after 
their  needs,  minister  to  their  wants,  and  'chase  after  them,1 
by  all  means,  when  a  few  steps  of  yours  may  save  them  a 
great  many  steps,  or,  possibly,  the  loss  of  a  dinner  for  which 
they  have  paid.  You  are  to  feel  yourself  their  servant,  and 
that  your  very  bread  and  butter  depends  on  your  serving  them 
well  and  faithfully.  There  are  two  little  verses  that  I  think 
I  shall  have  to  get  pur  friend  Tom  to  print  on  some  cards  for 
me.    Shall  I  tell  you  what  they  are  ?" 

uOh,  yes  !  do,"  said  Mary,  "and  I  will  find  where  they  are 
in  my  testament." 

Here  are  the  verses  he  repeated  : 

Hut  it  shall  not  be  so  among-  you:  hut  whosoever  will  be  great 
among-  you,  let  him  be  your  minister:  and  whosoever  will  be  ehief 
among  you,  let  him  be  your  servant. 

"  May  I  say  a  word  ?"  said  John's  mother. 
"To  be  sure,"  said  they  all,  tor  Mrs.  Jones  rarely  spoke  in 
such  a  general  conversation,  unless  she  was  right  to  the  point,. 


MEKKY BANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  153 

and  very  often  they  wondered  they  had  not  thought  of  her 
bright  suggestions  themselves. 

"  It  is  only  this  :  I  have  for  some  time  been  in  the  habit  of 
watching  customers,  and  making  sure  they  have  all  their 
purchases  just  as  they  go  away.  Thus  you  see,  John,  I  save 
having  to  '  chase  after  them."  ** 

At  this  there  was  a  little  laugh,  and  friend  M.  rejoined, 
l*  There  we  have  it,  just  what  I  was  trying  to  say.  Your 
mother,  John,  has  the  true  spirit  of  the  text,  after  all.  In 
serving  her  customers  well,  she  anticipates  not  only  their 
needs,  but  their  probable  weaknesses ;  and,  come  to  think  of 
it.  they  are  not  so  much  to  be  blamed  after  all.  Your  cus- 
tomers are  all  friends,  and  often  stop  to  talk  a  bit  and  look  at 
things ;  and  as  it  is  the  most  natural  thing  in  the  wTorld  to 
set  things  down,  no  wronder  they  forget."  By  this  time  he 
had  felt  in  his  last  pocket,  and  found  what  he  was  after.  It 
was  a  queen-cage,  and  he  wanted  a  hundred  made  just  like  it. 

-L  And  1  will  tell  you,  friends,  I  think  we  had  better  make  a 
thousand  while  we  are  about  it,  for,  after  the  wood  is  got  outr 
Aunt  Lucinda  can  make  the  tinwork,  put  in  the  candy,  and 
tack  on  the  wire  cloth ;  and  if  we  can't  sell  them  all  around 

here,  why,  we  will  just  advertise  them  in  the let's  seel 

what  is  Tom  going  to  call  our  little  paper  when  he  gets  it 
started  ?"' 

Aunt  Lucinda  most  thankfully  accepted  the  offer  of  some- 
thing to  do ;  and  as  she  was  a  Sunday-school  teacher  in  the 
little  church,  she  and  Mrs.  Jones  arranged  the  matter  of  pay 
without  a  bit  of  trouble,  and  in  a  very  few  weeks  she  could 
drive  nails,  and  do  small  tinwork,  with  her  nimble  fingers, 
with  a  rapidity  that  not  only  left  Mr.  Merrybanks  and  Mr. 
Jones  far  behind,  but  even  John  found  he  was  no  match  for 
the  "schoolma'am."  And  she  could  drop  her  hammer  and 
nails,  and  make  pies  too,  that  sold  like  hot  cakes.  As  many 
as  25  pies  in  a  day  were  frequently  sold  :  and  although  the  lit- 


154  MEttRFBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

tle'house  seemed  pretty  small  and  crowded  many  times,  there 
was  such  a  kindly  spirit  of  good  will  everywhere,  that  it  really 
seemed  as  if  other  members  of  the  little  family  besides  Mr. 
Jones  were  saving  to  themselves, 

And  whosoever  will  be  chief  among-  you,  let  him  be  your  servant: 
•even  as  the  Son  of  man  came  not  be  ministered  unto,  but  to  minister, 
•and  to  give  his  life  a  ransom  for  nuny.— Matt.  20:28. 


CHAPTER  XXXI. 

Do  justly,  love  mercy,  and  walk  humbly  before  God.— Micah  6:8. 

THE  bees  all  wintered  nicely  around  Onionville,  and  many 
preparations  are  now  being  made  for  a  fine  crop  of  hon- 
ey. Mr.  Merrybanks  and  his  neighbor  are  having  all 
they  can  possibly  do  making  bee-hives,  even  with  the  aid  the 
sawmill  men  can  give  them.  Aunt  Lucinda  has  made  nearly 
a  whole  basswood-tree  up  into  queen-cages ;  but  perhaps  I 
ought  to  say  the  tree  was  not  very  large.  It  was  cut  down  in 
the  woods,  and  ripped  up  into  plank  about  2i  inches  thick, 
and  these  were  then  ripped  up  into  strips  about  three  inches 
wide.  To  have  them  dry  quickly,  these  strips  of  plank  were 
put  up  on  some  timbers  over  the  great  boiler  of  the  sawmill. 
After  they  were  dry  they  were  smoothed  on  two  sides  with  the 
big  power  planer,  and  then  with  the  boring -machine  they 
were  quickly  bored — one  large  and  two  small  holes.  The 
large  hole  was  2  in.,  and  the  small  ones  £,  the  smaller  ones 
being  so  near  the  larger  one  as  to  make  a  }  opening  from  one 
to  the  other.  You  see,  they  were  all  along  in  the  sticks,  so 
that  when  a  stick  was  completely  bored  it  was  all  ready  to 
be  ripped  lengthwise  into  long  strips  of  queen-cages.  These 
strips,  when  ripped  off  and  planed,  were  just  +  in.  thick.    The 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 


155- 


next  thing  to  do  to  them  was  to  saw  a  little  groove  for  the- 
tin  to  slide  in,  near  each  corner.  This  was  done  on  a  little 
platform  fixed  on  the  right  bevel,  close  up  to  the  saw.  You 
can  see  the  large  hole  referred  to  below ;  but  the  two  small 
ones  are  covered  with  manilla  paper  to  keep  the  candy  from 
rattling  out. 


MERRYBANKS     QUEEN-CAGE. 

After  all  the  grooving  was  done,  the  sticks  were  taken  in< 
bundles,  being  careful  to  have  the  holes  all  match  (the  holes- 
were  all  at  an  equal  distance  apart,  because  they  were  accu- 
rately spaced  by  the  boring-machine),  and  cut  up  so  as  to- 
make  the  cages  complete,  except  the  tin.  candy,  and  wire 
cloth.  Mr.  Merrybanks  said  they  would  offer  these  bored 
wooden  blocks  to  the  people  at  a  low  price  just  as  they  were, 
for  the  women  and  children  could  make  the  rest  at  their  own 
homes,  and  thus  save  expense.  John  thought  they  couldn't 
all  make  the  tin  slide,  for  they  didn't  all  have  a  tinner's  shears- 
and  fifty-cent  folder,  so  they  decided  to  offer  the  tin  slides  and 
the  woodwork  both  for  sale.  The  price  they  fixed  on  them  by 
the  hundred  was  a  cent  and  a  half  for  the  wood  part,  and  half' 
a  cent  each  for  the  tin  slides.  The  cheapest  kind  of  tin 
is.  of  course,  as  good  for  tihe  slides  as  any.  It  is  first  cut  into 
quare  pieces.  To  be  sure  and  have  these  right,  a  nice  tin 
pattern  is  kept  hung  up  on  a  nail,  and  plainly  labeled,  so  that 
no  mistakes  will   be  made.    They  should  be  so  folded  as  to* 


K56  MEKRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

slide  closely,  or  a  queen  may  be  lost  by  an  unlucky  slide  drop- 
ping out,  and,  at  the  same  time,  they  should  not  push  it  in  too 
hard,  or  it  may  be  so  much  trouble  in  withdrawing  the  slide 
after  the  cage  is  affixed  to  the  comb  that  it  is  pulled  loose,  en- 
dangering the  queen  in  that  way.  The  shrinking  of  the  wood 
will,  of  course,  be  liable  to  make  trouble  of  this  kind,  and,  to 
guard  against  it,  the  pieces  were  piled  out  in  the  sun,  and 
turned  over  until  they  were  most  thoroughly  seasoned  before 
the  tins  were  fitted.  If  at  any  time  a  tin  was  found  too 
loose,  they  found  by  bending  down  the  fold  that  it  could  be 
made  to  work  as  closely  as  desired.  The  wire  cloth  was  cut 
with  a  pattern  in  the  same  way,  and,  to  avoid  the  nuisance  of 
loose  ends  of  wire  to  catch,  the  edges  of  this  were  also  folded. 
After  the  women  got  to  work  at  them,  Mr.  M.  gave  them  a 
good  many  hints  in  regard  to  saving  time  and  material.  First, 
they  cut  the  wire  cloth  larger  than  was  needed.  He  explained 
that  all  that  was  needed  was  just  enough  to  barely  cover  the 
holes  in  the  wood.  Any  more  would  be  a  waste  of  time,  wire 
cloth,  and  postage.  The  same  with  the  tin  slides.  The  can- 
dy, which  was  the  kind  given  us  by  friend  Good,  was  put  into 
the  two  smaller  holes,  before  the  wire  cloth  was  put  on. 

At  first  they  greased  the  tin  slides  where  the  candy  touched, 
but  f  tiend  M.  explained  that  it  was  not  necessary,  for,  when 
cold,  the  tin  is  easily  broken  loose;  and  besides,  a  very  small 
particle  of  oil  or  grease  is  fatal  to  bees  or  other  insects,  by 
closing  their  breathing-pores.  The  tin  points  for  holding  the 
cages  to  the  combs,  they  had  been  in  the  habit  of  making  one 
at  a  time  and  snipping  a  corner  off  from  each,  to  be  thrown 
away.  He  showed  them  a  better  way,  by  cutting  strips  ix3i. 
The  hole  for  driving  in  the  tack  was  now  punched  in  each  end, 
and  then  a  sloping  cut  across  near  the  middle  made  two  points 
at  once,  nicely  sharpened.  One  cut  not  only  made  two,  but, 
by  punching  the  holes  while  together,  there  were  only  half  as 
many  pieces  to  be  handled.    Where  one  makes  only  a  few 


MEKKVBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOK.  157 

cages,  it  would  seem  that  five  cents  is  a  pretty  small  price; 
but  after  making  a  thousand  or  more,  one  becomes  astonished 
to  see  how  cheaply  such  a  thing  can  be  made,  especially  where 
all  false  and  useless  motions  in  their  manufacture  are  thrown 
out. 

There  were  two  diversions  from  the  business  of  bee  culture 
going  on  about  this  time.  One  was  Mr.  Merry  banks'  new 
speculation  of  raising  fish.  He  had  got  some  new  German 
carp,  and  they  were  in  a  pond  by  themselves,  where  he  tamed 
them  so  that  they  would  come  up  and  eat  out  of  his  hand,  like 
a  lot  of  pigs  or  chickens;  and  so  eager  were  they  for  their 
daily  rations,  they  would  often  jump  clear  up  out  of  the  water 
to  show  their  joy  at  the  prospect  of  being  fed.  He  claimed 
that  he  could  raise  tish  so  cheaply  he  wras  going  to  supply  the 
lunch-room  with  tish  that  could  be  sold  at  5  cents  a  dish,  just 
as  they  sold  corn  and  baked  beans,  and  so,  of  course,  all  the 
hands  at  both  the  saw  and  grist  mill  were  interested  in  the 
experiment.  The  other  diversion  was  John's  ducks,  and 
this  is 

THE   DUCK   STORY. 

You  see.  Mr.  Jones  didn't  keep  any  fowls,  and  I  don't  ex- 
actly know  why  he  didn't,  either;  for  boiled  eggs  had  got  to 
be  a  very  favorite  lunch,  served  with  horseradish.  Did  I  tell 
you  that  Mr.  Merrybanks  had  invented  a  machine  to  grate 
horseradish  with  V  Well,  he  did,  and  he  put  it  up  in  those  3- 
cent  honey-tumblers,  and  sold  tumbler  and  all  for  only  6  cts. 
It  is  true,  some  of  the  mill-men  would  take  a  whole  tumbler- 
ful at  a  meal,  but  it  had  a  "big  run,'"  as  John  said,  for  all 
that,  and  would  have  had  a  bigger  one  still  if  they  had  not 
used  up  all  the  horseradish  in  the  neighborhood.  A  horse- 
radish plat  is  now  started,  and  another  year  they  are  going  to 
have  some  of  the  cultivated  sort.  Its  straight,  regular  rows, 
and  luxuriant  foliage,  are  now  a  pleasant  sight. 


158  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

This  isn't  a  duck  story,  is  it  ?  Well,  you  just  wait  audi  see. 
You  see,  John  had  to  go  to  the  grocery  for  eggs  a  great  many 
times,  and  a  project  had  been  talked  of  for  raising  their  own 
eggs.  One  morning,  as  he  was  taking  a  basket  of  eggs  home. 
Tom,  Bob,  and  several  others,  met  him.  when  Tom  exclaimed, — 

"  Why,  John,  where  did  you  get  those  duck's  eggs  ?" 

"They  aren't  duck's  eggs,  they  are  hen's  eggs  that  I  just 
bought  at  the  grocery." 

"  I  tell  you  they  are  duck's  eggs  ;  aren't  they,  Bob  ?  " 

"  Duck's  eggs,  as  sure  as  I  am  alive, "  said  Bob,  with  the  air 
of  a  professor,  for  he  was  the  "  poultry-man  "  of  the  town, 
and  prided  himself  not  a  little  as  such. 

M  Haven't  you  got  a  hen  that  sits  ?  "  inquired  Tom. 

"We  haven't  any  hens  at  all."  said  John,  and  then  he  re- 
sumed :  "  Why,  what  about  hens  that  sit,  any  way  ?  " 

"  Why,  you  could  just  put  ;those  eggs  under  a  hen,  and  she 
would  hatch  you  out  a  whole  brood  of  ducks,  and  they  would 
just  do  splendidly  on  that  pond  of  yours.*' 

"But,"  said  John,  beginning  to  catch  the  fever  a  little. 
"  ducks  don't  lay  as  many  eggs  as  hens  do,  do  they  ?  " 

"  You  bet  they  do,"  said  another  boy  who  had  just  come  up. 
"  We  used  to  have  ducks,  and  they  just  laid,  and  laid,  and 
never  stopped  to  sit,  as  hens  do." 

Now,  thought  John,  I  know  ducks  are  just  what  we  want ; 
and  if  I  could  only  get  a  sitting  hen,  wouldn't  it  be  fun  to- 
raise  them  ?    Here  Bob  interposed  a  suggestion : 

"I've  got  a  sitting  hen,  a  good  one,  that  I  will  rent  to  you 
for  5  cents  a  week.'' 

"Done,"  said  John;  "and  here  is  the  money  for  four 
weeks.    Let  us  go  right  over  and  get  her." 

"John  marched  home  triumphantly  with  the  basket  of 
duck's  eggs  in  one  hand  and  sitting  hen  in  the  other.  But 
when  his  mother  explained  to  him  that  he  could  buy  hens 
right  out  for  less  money  than  he  had  paid  for  the  use  of  one- 


MEKRYHAXKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  15H 

a  month,  he  was  a  good  deal  set  back.  At  her  suggestion  he 
carried  the  hen  back  again  and  remonstrated  against  this 
piece  of  juvenile  extortion.  Bob  refused  to  give  back  the 
money,  and  only  replied  to  all  Johns  explanations,  that  "  A 
bargain's  a  bargain.'*  and  the  rest  of  the  boys  only  laughed 
and  bantered  him  until  the  duck  story  seemed  to  bid  fair  to 
be  the  bane  of  his  life.  John  refused  to  take  the  poor  hen, 
and  Bob  refused  to  take  her.  and  she  seemed  likely  to  have 
liberty  to  sit  or  not  sit.  as  she  chose,  until  friend  M.  happened 
along,  and  they  stated  the  case  to  him.  When  he  found,  by 
reasoning  with  Bob,  that  he  had  no  mind  to  relent  in  the 
least,  he  advised  John  to  stand  bv  the  original  bargain.  Said 
he  — 

"Boys,  you  have  here  a  fair  illustration  of  business  mat- 
ters among  grown-up  men.  As  a  general  rule,  with  but  few 
exceptions,  I  would  advise  you  always  to  stand  to  all  agree- 
ments. If  you  have  made  a  promise  hastily,  get  an  honorable 
release  from  it  if  you  can :  but  if  you  can  not,  hold  to  it  to 
the  very  letter,  and  resolve  it  shall  be  a  lesson  to  you  to  be 
more  careful  in  the  future.  John,  take  your  hen  home,  and 
set  her  as  you  intended;  and  as  it  may  be  difficult  to  get  her 
to  sit  amid  new  surroundings.  I  am  sure  Bob  will  lend  you 
her  old  nest,  and  enough  of  the  surroundings  to  make  her  feel 
at  home.    Will  you  not.  Bob  ?  " 

•'Of  course."  said  Bob:  "she  was  in  a  barrel,  and  we  will 
take  the  barrel  dowTn  and  hx  it  up,  and  put  her  on ;  won't  we, 
1  »oys  ? " ' 

They  did  so.  and  she  is  this  minute  sitting  as  nicely  as  can 
be.  on  thirteen  eggs  in  the  barrel,  nicely  fixed  up,  down  near 
the  pond.  In  just  four  weeks  we  will  take  a  look  ;'t  the 
premises  again,  and  see  what  has  happened  in  all  this  tun'. 


One  day.  as  Mr.  Jones  was  coming  home  from  his  work, 
with  his  horse  and  wagon,  he  saw.  some  little  distance  ahead 


16)  ME KRY BANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

of  hiin,  a  man  on  foot.  Of  course,  lie  asked  the  man  if  he 
would  not  like  a  lift  in  his  wagon  ;  and  after  he  got  in,  and 
they  had  talked  of  tlie  weather  and  different  subjects,  Mr. 
Jones  began  meditating  whether  it  were  best  to  speak  to  him. 
an  utter  stranger,  on  the  subject  of  his  soul's  salvation.  He 
knew  his  neighbor  Merrybanks  would,  but  he  talked  so  easily 
it  seemed  perfectly  right  and  natural  for  him  to  do  so.  The 
more  he  thought  of  it,  the  more  it  seemed  as  if  he  could 
never  do  it:  why,  the  man  would  surely  think  him  crazy  to 
start  out.  on  so  short  an  acquaintance,  and  such  an  unusual 
subject.  A  better  spirit,  however,  urged  him  to  ask  God  to 
guide,  and  make  the  attempt,  at  least.  The  man  did  seem  as- 
tonished at  first;  but  when  he  understood  that  it  was  out  of  a 
kind  and  friendly  heart  that  the  words  came,  and  to  him  an 
utter  stranger,  he  was  visibly  touched,  and  in  his  turn  gave 
Mr.  Jones  a  history  of  his  life.  He  had  indeed  been  a  bad 
and  wicked  man,  and  it  was  many  years  since  any  one  had 
thought  of  speaking  of  the  Savior  to  one  so  far  away  as  he. 
Before  they  reached  home,  he  told  Mr.  Jones  if  there  was  any 
thing  in  the  world  he  could  do  for  him.  he  would  do  it.  "  I 
will  work  for  my  board,  or  you  may  give  any  wrages  you  think 
proper,  only  let  me  be  near  you,  and  do  not  force  me  to  go 
away  from  the  only  person  on  the  face  of  the  earth  who  has 
seemed  like  a  friend  to  me.''  He  stayed,  and  proved  a  most 
efficient  hand  in  helping  about  the  bees,  bee-hives,  carp-pond, 
garden,  or  any  thing  else;  for  there  is  no  work  in  the  world 
that  counts  like  that  glad  and  willing  service  that  comes  from 
a  grateful  heart.  Furthermore,  he  had  once  worked  in  a  glass- 
factory,  but  had  been  discharged  because  of  intemperance. 
Well,  he  had  several  times  suggested  that  they  could  sell  with 
their  tinware  small  fancy  glassware,  such  as  he  used  to  make : 
and  after  he  had  been  there  long  enough  to  convince  his 
friends  that  he  really  meant  to  lead  the  life  of  a  Christian, 
they  sent  him  one  day  with  the  horse  and  wagon  to  the  city 


MERKYBANKS  AND  HJS  NEIGHBOR. 


16] 


where  lie  used  to  work,  for  a  load  of  glassware.      Here  are  a 
few  pieces  of  what  he  brought  back. 


THE  GLASSWARE  THAT  -.1131  **  HROUGHT  HACK. 

They  were  made  for  a  little  set,  sugar,  cream,  butter,  and 
spoon  holder,  but  they  took  the  butter  for  comb  honey,  the 
cream  for  liquid  honey,  the  sugar  for  candied  honey,  and  the 
spoon-holder  for  honey-flowers,  and  thus  made  them  all  into 
honey-dishes ;  and  at  ten  cents  apiece  the  whole  wagon-load 
was  disposed  of  in  a  very  short  time,  and  *  Jim  "  was  soon  to 
go  for  more.  And  that  very  little  venture  of  friend  Jones  in 
Christian  work  bid  fair  to  not  only  save  a  soul,  but  God  sent 
a  speedy  blessing  with  it  in  the  shape  of  this  glassware  trade. 


162  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 


CHAPTER  XXXII. 


So  the  Lord  alone  did  lead  him,  *  *  *  *  and  he  made- 
him  to  suck  honey  out  of  the  rock,  and  oil  out  of  the  flinty  rock.— Dettt. 
32:12.13. 

THE  duck-eggs  have  hatched,  and  the  little  ones  are  old 
enough  to  find  their  way  down  to  the  water,  not  very  far 
from  the  old  barrel  from  which  they  first  looked  out  up- 
on the  light  of  day  ;  and  every  morning,  as  soon  as  the  sun  is 
up,  and  they  have  had  their  breakfast  of  meal  and  water, 
which  they  take  up  with  their  comical  spoon-shaped  bills, 
down  they  go  to  the  glassy  surface  of  the  pond,  and  amuse 
themselves.  The  children  have  laughed  to  see  their  antics 
and  capers,  until  it  has  got  to  be  the  principal  feature  of  inter- 
est at  the  Temperance  Hotel,  to  see  the  ducks  play.  Would 
you  like  to  see  them  ?    Well,  here  they  are. 

There  are  eleven  of  them ;  and  when  they  all  take  a  notion 
to  dive,  the  children  consider  this  the  crowning  feature  of  the 
entertainment ;  and  when  one  after  another  pops  his  head  up 
into  the  air  again,  with  such  a  sort  of  comical  twinkle  in  his 
bright  little  eyes,  John  thinks  there  never  was  so  pretty  a  lot 
of  pets  in  all  the  world  before,  and  he  has  already  laid  plans 
for  the  prettiest  and  handiest  duck-house  that  ever  was  seen, 
to  be  built  solely  for  his  wabbling  web-footed  flock.  He  has 
borrowed  Mr.  Merrybanks'  poultry-book,  and  hunted  over  the 
Rural  New -Yorker  and  American  Agriculturist  in  vain  for  a 
word  about  ducks;  but  for  some  strange  reason,  the  world  al- 
most seems  to  ignore  the  subject  so  dear  to  his  heart,  and  it  is 
only  now  and  then  that  a  wTord  is  dropped  in  regard  to  them. 
"Do  you  know  any  thing  about  ducks  ?"  has  come  to  be  the 
stereotyped  inquiry  that  J0bn  puts  to  almost  every  one  he 
knows,  and  often  to  people  he  doesn't  know,  or  at  least  whom 


MEKKYLANKS  AND  HIS  NEI&H1I0K. 


16* 


THE  DUCK-POND  AND  THE  DUCKS. 

he  has  known  but  a  very  little  while.  His  mother  is  inclined 
to  be  a  little  anxious  about  him  in  the  mavter,  and  to  fear  he 
will  neglect  his  tinwork,  and  get  changeable -minded:  but 
friend  M.  tells  her  to  let  him  alone,  and  that  it  is  a  good  thing 
for  a  child  to  get  enthusiastic  on  any  branch  of  rural  indus- 
try, or  any  other,  for  that  matter ,'that  sends  him  to  books  and 
papers  and  people  for  knowledge.  Very  likely,  friend  M.  has 
had  some  experience;  and  as  he  is  pretty  comfortably  oft"  in 
this  world's  goods,  he  certainly  can  not  be  very  much  mistak- 
en. Already  it  has  resulted  in  John's  taking  a  half-acre  of 
ground  on  shares,  which  he  has  planted  to  corn  to  feed  his 
flock  of  ducks  on  through  the  winter ;  and,  by  the  way.  one 
great  cause  of  anxiety  to  him  has  been  to  know  what  they 
were  going  to  do  through  the  winter  when  the  pond  freezes  up. 
Mary  suggested   that  that  they  would  probably  •'slide**   in- 


1B4  MEHKYIiAXKS  AND  HIS   NEIGHBOR. 

stead  of  swim ;  but  a  glance  at  their  soft  pink  feet  only  makes 
John  resolve  anew  that  they  shall  have  a  warm  house  in  a  dry 
sandy  place ;  and  as  he  has  studied  up  pretty  well  the  subject 
of  poultry-houses,  and  the  profit  to  be  derived  from  saving 
the  manure,  he  declares  their  house  shall  have  its  floor  dusted 
with  dry  ashes  every  single  morning,  so  that  it  shall  be  pleas- 
ant and  clean,  as  well  as  warm,  all  the  winter  long. 

**  Mother,  don't  you  think  their  feet  can  be  made  to  always 
stay  soft  and  pink,  just  as  they  are  now,  if  they  have  a  real 
nice  clean  house  ?  " 

"  Very  likely  they  would,  if  you  teach  them  to  wash  their 
feet  every  night,  just  before  they  go  to  bed,  as  yon  do;  "  but 
it  is  Mary,  instead  of  his  mother,  who  says  this,  and  there  is 
a  sly  twinkle  in  her  eye,  as  she  puts  on  the  concluding  part  of 
the  sentence,  with  emphasis,  for  John  well  remembers  that 
his  mother  often  has  to  scold  some  to  get  him  to  wash  his  feet 
every  Saturday  night,  to  say  nothing  of  every  night. 

While  she  is  speaking,  she  has  gradually  edged  round  near 
to  the  open  door,  judging  rightly  that  John  will  be  likely  to 
give  her  a  chase  in  return  for  this  gratuitous  piece  of  informa- 
tion ;  nor  was  she  disappointed.  He  makes  a  spring,  intend- 
ing to  catch  her  before  she  gets  out;  but  she  slips  past  him 
like  the  wind,  and,  before  her  mother  can  say  a  word  to  her 
about  her  unfinished  work,  both  go  flying  across  the  garden 
and  around  the  pond.  Mary  got  around  on  the  opposite  side, 
and  then  managed  to  keep  John  directly  opposite  her,  by  go- 
ing first  one  way  and  then  the  other,  as  often  as  he  started  to 
go  in  either  direction.  It  was  no  use;  she  was  the  quicker, 
and  he  couldn't  catch  her.  Finally,  as  if  to  divert  attention, 
she  called  out,— 

"Why,  John,  there  were  eleven  ducks  this  morning:  now  I 
can  count  only  ten."  They  both  counted,  and  they  had  to 
sadly  acknowledge  there  were  but  ten,  and  the  missing  duck 
was  one  with  a  queer  white  spot  on  its  back. 


MERUYBANK8  AND  HIS  NEIGH BOK.  1H5 

"  Let's  call  them  up  and  teed  them." 

••Ducky:  ducky!  ducky!"" 

Qp  scrambled  the  ten.  but  nowhere  could  the  eleventh  be 
found.  John  feared  it  had  got  drowned;  but  neighbor  M. 
assured  him  ducks  do  not  drown:  besides,  if  it  bad  it  would 
float.  The  next  morning  another  was  gone.  Weasles,  minks, 
skunks,  suggested  sympathizing  friends.  The  nine  were  put 
into  the  barrel  with  their  hen-mother  that  night,  and  the 
entrance  closed  with  a  slatted  door.  In  the  morning,  out- 
marched the  nine,  as  big  as  life  :  but  on  counting  them  again 
toward  noon,  only  eight  were  found.  Who  could  solve  the 
mystery  V  Why  should  the  animal,  or  whatever  it  wa>.  take 
only  one  a  day  ?  They  usually  disappeared  in  the  morning, 
but  not  always:  and  the  great  mystery  remained  unsolved, 
until  only  two  were  left.  John  was  now  watching  the  ducks 
nearly  half  his  time,  and  finally  he  saw,  one  morning,  the 
great  black  cat  stealthily  stealing  along  in  the  grass  near  the 
margin  of  the  pond.  He  ran  hastily  and  shouted  at  him,  but 
Dick  in  a  twinkling  grabbed  one  of  the  two  remaining  ducks 
in  his  mouth,  and  was  off  like  an  arrow.  John  grabbed  a 
half-brick  and  gave  chase.  Into  the  cellar  w^ent  Dick  with  his 
duck,  and  into  the  cellar  went  John  with  his  brick  uplifted. 
Dick  esconced  himself  up  in  the  further  corner,  under  one  of 
the  joists,  and  glared  at  John  in  the  darkness,  with  eyes  like 
a  couple  of  coals  of  fire,  while  he  still  held  the  duck  in  his 
mouth.  Dick  had  probably  never  heard  of  "roast  duck:" 
but  if  he  had.  I  presume  he  would  have  said  he  preferred  his 
when  of  just  the  right  tender  age.  without  roasting.  If  he 
did  not  know  by  experience  that  ducks  are  good  to  eat.  who 
did  ?  John  did  not  stop  to  moralize,  however.  lie  was  a 
practiced  ball-player,  and  his  temper  was  up:  infact.it  had 
been  getting  up  for  a  week,  and  many  a  time  he  had  vowed 
vengeance  on  the  unscrupulous  author  of  his  sore  trials. 
Whack!   went   the  brick,  and   John's  mother,   in   the  room 


166  MEKRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

above,  heard  an  unearthly  screech  in  the  cellar  ;  John  picked 
up  his  dead  duck,  and  went  up  and  sat  down  on  the  doorstep 
and— cried.  Yes,  he  did  cry  ;  in  fact,  he  sobbed  so  that  when 
friend  Merybanks  came  up  and  asked  what  it  all  meant,  John 
could  only  point  with  his  finger  at  the  poor  little  soft  downy 
duck,  as  he  lay  on  the  step  beside  him,  still  and  silent  in 
death.  His  pranks  and  antics  in  the  water  were  all  over.  Not 
all  the  skill  of  man  could  make  those  little  pink  webbed  feet 
move  again,  nor  those  queer  little  eyes  open  once  more ;  no. 
not  even  for  one  instant. 

John's  father  was  inclined  to  remonstrate  at  so  much  fuss 
just  about  a  dead  duck ;  but  friend  M.  kindly  took  John's 
part.  Said  he  :  "I  like  to  see  boys  who  care  for  things,  and 
it  is  far  better,  friend  Jones,  to  have  them  carry  it  to  ex- 
tremes, even,  than  to  see  a  boy  who  cares  for  nothing.  Let 
him  cry.  and  it  will  make  him  the  better  man  for  it.  I  am  not 
sure  but  that  it  would  be  better  for  us  if  we  all  cried  more 
and  harder.  '  Blessed  are  they  that  mourn,  for  they  shall 
be  comforted.'    John!11 

"Sir  ?"  John  had  got  over  the  tumult  enough  now.  so  he 
could  answer. 

"  How  long  ago  was  it  that  you  rented  that  hen  V"1 

L'  About  seven  weeks.'' 

"  Have  they  been  pleasant  weeks,  John  V  " 

"Very  pleasant,  sir,  until  the  ducks  began  to  get  lost." 
Here  John  heaved  a  sigh  again,  and  wiped  his  eyes. 

"  Your  experiment  cost  you  twenty  cents,  and  what  have 
you  got  left  ?" 

"One  duck,11  said  John,  sadly  and  sorrowfully. 

"  But,  John,  it  seems  to  me  you  have  got  more  than  that '  one 
duck1  for  the  twenty  cents.    How  about  that  half-acre  of  corn?11 

"  Why,  I  shan't  need  all  that  for  just  one  duck ;  and  be- 
sides T  worked  and  got  that." 


MEKKVBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  MQ 

"  I  guess  we  shall  find  other  use  for  the  corn  besides  feed- 
ing it  to  ducks.  John  ;  and  you  say  you  worked  for  it.  Now 
tell  me  if  you  think  it  likely  you  would  have  worked  as  you 
did  at  it.  early  and  late,  had  it  not  been  for  the  enthusiasm 
that  your  pets  (or  the  prospect  of  them)  stirred  within  yon.*' 

"  I  am  quite  sure  I  should  not  have  have  had  the  corn  if  it 
"had  not  been  for  the  ducks." 

"  Well,  in  looking  over  the  agricultural  papers  to  rind  some- 
thing about  ducks,  you  became  interested  in  the  subject  of 
fertilizers  ?  " 

"Yes,"  said  Mary,  who  had  been  looking  out  of  the  door 
for  some  time  unobserved,  "that's  what  made  him  buy  that 
bagful  of  stuff  that  made  it  smell  so  nasty  around  here  we 
could  hardly  sleep  nights ;  but  it  made  his  corn  grow.  I  guess : 
and  I  tell  you,  Mr.  Merrybanks.  have  you  seen  our  summer 
squashes,  around  which  he  put  some  of  the  stuff  V" 

'kXo  :  tell  us  about  them.  Mary."1 

"Why,  he  dug  the  dirt  away  from  them  until  they  almost 
fell  over,  and  then  he  sifted  the  stuff  carefully  around  where 
the  little  roots  were ;  then  he  put  a  lot  more  of  nice  fine  dirt 
around  them,  and  mixed  it  all  up  so  the  fertilizer  would  not  be 
too  strong  for  them,  and  you  just  come  and  look  at  them  now." 

The  squashes  were  indeed  pictures  of  the  most  beautiful, 
healthy  luxuriance,  and  his  experiments  had  gone  to  other 
garden  vegetables  as  well,  and  John,  in  his  delight  in  explain- 
ing and  showing  them,  had  already  almost  forgotten  his  sor- 
row. To  tell  the  truth,  he  had,  since  the  ducks  began  to  dis- 
appear, almost  neglected  to  look  at  his  garden,  and.  come  to 
take  a  good  look  at  the  things,  he  was  almost  as  much  sur- 
prised as  the  rest  of  them. 

"John."  said  friend  M.,  after  they  were  seated  again,  "has 
it  occurred  to  you  that  you  have,  during  the  past  few  weeks, 
■got  a  great  deal  of  general  knowledge  of  a  valuable  kind  for  a 
boy  V    You  have  not  only  studied  up  corn  and  fertilizers,  but 


1H*  MEKRVBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGH  BOH. 

you  have,  studied  up  the  modern  machinery  for  applying  these 
new  and  useful  manures,  in  a  way  that  is  beginning  to  give 
you  a  glimpse  of  the  great  busy  wrorld  engaged  in  furnishing 
farmers  with  improved  tools  and  materials  for  their  work.  Do 
you  not  see  God's  hand  in  this  ?  " 

'•Bat  my  ducks  are  gone/' 

"Yes;  but  are  you  sure  there  is  not  a  kind  Providence  in 
their  being  gone  ?  They  have  served  as  stepping-stones,  as  it 
were,  to  things  of  more  importance;  and  now  you  are  once 
started,  you  are  going  to  keep  on  reading  your  papers,  give 
your  garden  all  the  more  attention,  and  thank  God  still,  are 
you  not  ?" 

"I will  try.*" 

Mr.  M.  did  not  remind  him  that  such  a  lot  of  ducks  grown 
up  would  have  spoiled  the  pond  and  injured  the  fish,  because 
he  did  not  think  it  well  just  then ;  but  it  was.  nevertheless. 
true.  The  remaining  duck  was  turned  over  to  Mary,  and  she 
playfully  termed  him  her  "orphling."  By  some  strange 
freak,  we  hardly  know  how,  he  was  nicknamed  "■'  Moses.1'  and 
Moses  was  soon  a  great  pet  with  all. 

Dick,  the  cat  the  didn't  die),  was  soon  taught  that  ducks  are 
not  to  eat ;  but  he  had  a  sort  of  way  of  plaguing  the  duck  by 
trying  to  play  with  him,  or  worrying  him  when  he  was  taking 
his  food  out  of  his  own  especial  basin,  and  then  his  little  mis- 
tress Mary  would  come  and  scold  Dick,  and  drive  him  off. 
Well,  strange  to  tell,  Moses  soon  learned  to  run  for  Mary 
every  time  the  cat  bothered  him,  and  his  manner,  as  he 
wagged  his  short  tail  and  quacked  his  complaint,  seemed 
really  as  if  he  was  telling  of  the  indignities  he  received,  in 
plain  words,  and  nothing  would  pacify  him  until  she  would  go 
out  and  give  Dick  a  real  hard  scolding,  and  tell  him  to  leave 
Moses  alone.  l>  He  is  aunty's  poor  little  •  orphling."  and  they 
shan't  chase  and  bother  him  ;  she  just  won't  have  it;  "  and 
then  as  he  waddled  off  to  the  cat  'looking  back  now  and  then 


MEBRY BANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHHOK.  1fi» 

to  assure  himself  if  she  was  close  behind),  one  would  think, 
by  his  manner,  lie  repeated  it  all  with  a  "now  you  chase  me 
any  more,  if  you  flu  re  '" 


CHAPTER    XXXIII. 

Be  kindly  attectioned  one  to  another  with  brotherly  love:  in  honor 
preferring  one  another.— Romans  12: 10. 

i6  ]l /I"  OTHER,  make  John  stop  opening  the  door  and  let- 
yl  ting  the  flies  in.  He  has  just  been  opening  and 
shutting  it  for  pretty  nearly  half  an  hour,  and  the 
flies  have  just  come  in  by  the  thousands." 

••  Mother,  it  isn't  any  such  thing.  I  don't  believe  I've  been 
here  five  minutes,  and  there  hasn't  been  over  a  dozen  flies  got 
in.  if  you  count  them.'7 

"■'  Well,  you  know  what  trouble  mother  and  I  have  to  get 
them  out.  and  how  hard  we  have  tried  to  keep  them  out. 
Mother  !  can't  he  stop  ?  I  wish  you  would  just  go  along  out 
of  doors,  and  go  to  work."' 

"  Well,  now,  what  is  the  use  of  being  so  fldgetty  about  a  few 
flies  ?  They  don't  do  any  hurt.  Can't  a  body  ever  sit  down 
to  rest  just  a  minute,  without  such  an  everlasting  fault- 
finding ?" 

I  wonder,  my  friends,  if  you  ever  have  any  such  talk  at  your 
house.  I  do  not  mean  to  say  there  was  any  thing  very  bad 
about  it.  for  this  brother  and  sister  loved  each  other,  and 
either  one  would  have  been  sad  and  lonesome  had  the  other 
been  even  for  one  day  absent.  They  were  not  only  brother 
and  sister  by  flesh-and-blood  ties,  but  they  were  brother  and 
sister  in  the  little  church  I  have  given  you  glimpses  of  now 
and  then.  It  was  bad  in  one  respect;  for  such  expressions, 
even  in  a  mood  of  pleasantry,  are  not  just  the  best  thing.     It 


170  MF.KRVBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

wasn't  quite  pleasantry  either,  for  this  matter  of  letting  flies 
in  was  a  sore  point,  and  Mary  and  her  mother  had  many  times 
begged  the  "  men  folks :*  to  please  be  careful.  Do  you  remem- 
ber the  telephone  I  told  you  of  last  spring  V  Well,  it  was  there 
yet,  and  it  had  more  than  once,  when  they  least  expected  it, 
faithfully  reported  what  was  going  on.  When  neighbor  M. 
came  over  in  the  evening,  he  repeated  the  little  text  at  the 
head  of  our  chapter,  and  sat  down  by  the  young  folks  to  have 
a  little  talk  with  them.  He  was  the  superintendent  of  their 
little  Sunday-school,  and  of  course  they  took  it  kindly  of  him. 

"  Mr.  M.."  said  Mary, "  I  was  right,  was  I  not,  in  not  want- 
ing the  flies  to  come  into  the  house,  and  get  on  the  goods  we 
keep  to  sell  ? ,- 

"  You  were  doubtless  right,  my  girl,  in  wanting  to  keep  the 
tin  and  glass  ware,  and  other  goods,  free  from  the  disagreeable 
marks  left  by  flies ;  but,  are  you  sure  you  were  taking  the  easi- 
est and  shortest  way  to  get  John  to  aid  you  in  the  matter  ?  " 

Mary  saw  the  point  well  enough ;  but  partly  out  of  perver- 
sity, and  partly  out  of  fun.  she  replied,  "Why,  he  always 
minds  mother :  isn't  that  the  best  way  to  make  him  stop  V  '* 

••  We  might  lay  the  question  before  your  mother,  as  to 
whether  she  would  like  her  boy  and  girl  to  agree  between 
themselves,  or  to  call  on  her  to  make  one  or  the  other  do  so  and 
so,  when  they  seem  obstinate ;  or  we  might  settle  it  without 
calling  her  at  all.  I  am  sure  my  girl  is  honest  and  true,  and  I 
know,  too,  that  she  is  wise,  and  judges  well,  when  she  has  a 
mind  to.'"  At  this  point,  friend  M.  had  taken  Mary  by  the 
hand,  and  was  looking  kindly  into  her  eyes.  "Mary,  do  you 
think  your  mother  likes  to  be  called  upon  to  make  John 
mind  ?" 

w'No,  I  know  she  does  not;  for  I  have  often  heard  her  say 
so  when  she  was  tired."' 

"  Your  good  kind  mother  has  many  cares  and  worries : 
would  it  not  be  a  kindness,  to  avoid  teasing  and  asking  her 


MBBBYBANK8  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  171 

questions  of  this  nature  as  much  as  possible?"  Friend  M. 
here  reached  over  and  took  a  cased  picture  from  off  the  stand. 
"  Your  mother  was  once  a  bright  young  girl,  children  ;  as  voir 
look  at  this  picture  of  her  in  her  younger  years,  you  can  read- 
ily note  how  fast  she  is  growing  old.  Did  you  never  think  that 
it  is  these  little  cares  and  worries  that  add  the  wrinkles,  and! 
that  even  such  trifling  talks  as  you  had  this  morning  may  go  a 
great  way  toward  wearing  down  that  cheerful,  hard-working 
mother  ?  It  is  a  work  of  love,  I  know :  for  she  is  the  best  and 
most  faithful  friend  you  have  ever  known,  or  may  ever  know. 
Is  it  not  worth  while  for  us  all  to  try  to  keep  her  young-look- 
ing, and  to  make  her  glad  by  showing  that  we  appreciate 
that  kind,  self-sacrificing  spirit,  and  mean  to  show  it  by  ac- 
tions as  well  as  words  V**  The  tears  came  into  the  eyes  of 
both  the  children  as  they  looked  on  the  picture.  John  was- 
the  first  to  ask  forgiveness ;  but  Mary  declared  it  was  all  her 
fault.  Friend  M.  began  feeling  in  all  his  pockets  for  a  hand- 
kerchief :  but  as  usual  it  was  in  the  last  one  of  them  all :  and 
before  he  got  it  the  tears  came  into  his  eyes  too,  and  all  he 
could  say.  was.  "  God  bless  the  children  !  " 

Presently  he  brightened  up,  and  began  again. 

'"Look  here,  Mary;  unless  I  am  very  much  mistaken.  John 
had  some  reason  for  swinging  that  door,  even  five  minutes. 
It  is  some  reason  that  wre.  in  our  want  of  charity,  never  once 
dreamed  of :  for  John  is  no  idler,  and  seldom  does  things  with- 
out a  purpose.    Out  with  it.  John." 

John  glanced  at  the  screen-door,  and  finally  came  out  with 
"  Why.  you  see  the  spring  of  father's  smoker  is  broken,  and  I 
was  just  thinking  that  it  we  had  a  spring  that  could  be  easily 
slipped  on  the  outside,  a  new  one  might  be  put  on  without  rip- 
ping the  leather  off  and  gluing  it  on  again ;  and  while  I  was 
thinking  about  it.  I  happened  to  open  the  door  to  go  out,  and 
then  I  sat  down  to  think  about  it.  and  was  opening  the  door 


172 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 


and  letting  it  shut,  to  see  if  I  thought  the  spring  was  too  stiff ; 
and  while  I  was  thinking,  I  kept  opening  and  shutting  it."" 

"Well  done,  my  boy!"  And  as  friend  M.  spoke,  he,  too. 
began  opening  and  closing  the  door ;  but  as  it  was  after  dark, 
no  flies  came  in  then.  "  Why,  John,  you  have  made  a  great 
invention.    Bring  me  the  smoker  with  the  broken  spring.'* 

••  Why,  Tom  has  got  a  smoker  with  the  spring  broken  too,"" 
said  Mary,  "and  the  other  day  he  wanted  to  sell  the  queen  of 
one  of  his  cross  colonies  to  a  man,  and  the  only  way  they  could 
make  the  smoker  go  was  to  blow  in  the  door,  and  he  blowed  un- 
til he  got  ever  so  dizzy,  and  the  hybrid  bees  got  after  him  and 
stung  him  awfully.  His  face  didn't  swell  up  as  it  did  when  he 
carried  the  bees  home,  though,  for  he  has  got  used  to  it ;  but 
I  know  lie  would  be  real  glad  if  you  could  fix  his  smoker.*' 

Without  so  much  as  asking  leave,  friend  M.  took  the  spring 
off  the  door,  and  with  a  little  sewing-machine  screw-driver  he 
soon  had  it  attached  to  the  crippled  smoker.  This  is  the  way 
the  ppring  was  when  on  the  door. 


THE    SPRING   TO   THE   SCREEN-DOOR. 


MBKBYHANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 


in 


and  this  is  the  way  it  was  when  lie  had  got  it  fastened  on  to 
the  smoker. 


THE    WAY    THK    SPRING    LOOKED  AFTER    IT    WAS    PUT    ON   THE   SMOKER. 

The  last  one  of  the  four  screws  was  set  down  in  place,  and 
the  bellows  was  pressed  together  to  see  if  the  spring  would 
raise  the  boards.  It  was  just  the  thing  exactly.  The  boards 
would  go  clear  down  so  as  to  strike  together,  and  yet  up  they 
rose,  as  quick  as  a  wink,  straightening  the  leather  out.  even 
better  than  the  steel  spring  ever  did. 

••  And  it  works  so  nicely  and  easily.'"  said  John;  "and,  Mr. 
M.,  can  we  not  slip  the  spring  out  when  the  smoker  is  to  be 
sent  off  or  laid  away  ?  " 

In  a  twinkling  the  wire  was  bent  a  little,  so  it  could  be 
slipped  out  or  put  back  securely  in  place  in  a  little  more  than 
a  second  of  time ;  and  by  this  time  John  was  on  his  feet,  danc- 
ing after  the  old  fashion:  but  you  see  it  didn't  make  the 
dishes  clatter,  for  this  house  was  founded  on  a  rock. 

•  Why.  we  can  sell  thousands  and  thousands  of  them."  said 
John,  "  for  they  can  be  put  on  any  kind  of  a  smoker ;  and  if 
one  ever  breaks,  a  new  one  can  be  put  in  just  so  quick.'"  suit- 
ing the  action  to  the  word,  as  he  took  the  spring  out  and  put 
it  back  again,  over  and  over. 

••  0  Mr.  M. !  let  us  take  it  right  over  to  the  doctor's  and  get 
Tom  to  see  if  he  can't  engrave  it  and  put  it  in  his  paper. 
Father  and  mother  are  over  there,  and.  oh  .'  won't  they  be 
pleased  fV 

Onionville.  as   you  know,  is  not  a  very  large  place:   and 


174  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

when  any  thing  happens,  it  is  generally  pretty  well  known  in 
a  very  short  time  ;  and  so  by  the  time  they  got  to  the  grocery, 
by  some  unexplained  process  that  goes  far  ahead  of  telephones 
or  daily  papers,  quite  a  little  crowd  came  out  to  see  the  im- 
provement John  had  made  in  smokers.  Of  course,  every- 
body was  delighted  with  it ;  and  as  the  doctor  lived  close  by, 
they  all  had  to  follow  over.  Tom  had  gone  to  the  city,  and 
was  expected  home  every  minute ;  but  every  new  comer  must 
see  that  smoker-spring  put  on  and  taken  off,  and  John  had  by 
this  time  had  practice  enough  so  he  could  do  it  almost  as  deft- 
ly as  a  sleight-of-hand  performer.  Our  friend  Bob  was  among 
the  lookers-on ;  and  as  he  had  been  at  work  that  day,  fixing 
up  and  fencing  off  a  swampy  piece  of  ground  for  his  gold- 
spangled  Polands  (you  know  they  are  great  ramblers,  and 
want  large  yards),  he  came  in  barefooted.  As  he  crowded  up 
to  see  the  sight,  a  man  with  a  long  clay  pipe  set  his  heavy 
cowhide  boot  on  Bob's  bare  foot,  and  Bob  swore. 

11  Sh — sh  !"*  said  some  one  near;  and  he  punched  him  with: 
his  thumb,  and  pointed  to  friend  Merrybanks.  Our  friend  M. 
was  so  well  known  in  the  community,  and  also  the  fact  that 
he  had  so  often  reproved  swearing,  that  the  sight  of  his  turn- 
ed back  was  a  tenor  to  evil-doers.  Bob  would  usually  have 
been  hushed  with  this,  but  now  he  was  angry.  He  was  the 
more  angry,  because  the  man  with  the  pipe  seemed  so  intent 
on  seeing  what  was  to  be  seen,  that  he  cared  little  whom  he 
had  hurt.  How  often  a  little  apology  will  mend  a  matter,  if 
made  quickly  and  w7ith  a  kind  spirit !  Had  he  only  said,  "I 
am  very  sorry  indeed,  my  boy,  I  was  so  careless  and  awk- 
ward, "  Bob  would  have  overlooked  it  in  an  instant;  but  as 
it  was,  he  argued  the  point,  and  declared  Mr.  Merrybanks 
wasn't  any  better  than  some  folks  who  did  swear.  It  was  a 
rather  trying  place  for  friend  M. ;  and  while  he  was  waiting 
for  God  to  direct  in  what  way  he  should  act,  Tom  drove  up* 
The  first  words  he  heard  were.— 


MEUKYRANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  1T5 

tw  I  tell  you,  they  aren't  a  bit  better.  Tom  swears,  and  the 
doctor  swears,  and  they  are  just  as  good  as  any  of  your  church 
people.' ' 

u  Why,  Bob,  what  is  the  fuss  to-night  V  What  was  it  I 
heard  you  say  about  me?" 

Bob  explained  matters ;  but  as  he  did  so  he  was  evidently 
softening  down  some. 

"Look  here.  Bob,  with  shame  I  acknowledge  that  I  do- 
swear:  but  with  God's  help  I  will  swear  no  more.  I  have 
been  thinking  of  this  a  long  time,  and  now  I  will  tell  you  what 
more  w-e  will  do.  Next  Sunday  I  am  going  to  Sabbath-school ,  if 
friend  Merrybanks  has  some  back  corner  where  I  may  sit  and 
learn  decency.  If  I  heard  aright  as  I  drove  up,  you  wTere 
quoting  me  a  little;  now,  come  and  go  with  me,  and  then 
there  will  be  a  pair  of  us  who  are  going  to  do  better." 

Friend  M.,  you  see,  had  not  even  so  much  as  said  a  word, 
and  yet  here  was  a  good  work  going  on  before  him.  That 
wasn't  all.  either.  The  doctor  came  up  and  took  him  by  the 
hand,  and  wanted  to  be  counted,  too,  among  those  who  were 
determined  to  try  to  do  better.  It  is  to  be  regretted  that  he 
could  not  speak  out  in  as  manly  a  way  as  his  boy  did ;  but  he 
felt  the  reproof  administered  by  poor  Bob  in  his  anger,  and 
resolved  that  he  would  try  that  the  boys  should  no  more  quote 
his  example  as  an  excuse  for  swearing.  My  friend,  what  do 
you  think  about  it  V  Is  there  one  whose  eye  rests  on  this  little 
story  who  is  in  the  habit  of  swearing  when  he  gets  mad  ?  If 
there  is,  and  you  are  thinking  this  minute  that  you  will  be  no 
longer  quoted  as  were  Tom  and  the  doctor,  just  come  out  be- 
fore men,  or  before  these  boys  and  girls,  rather,  and  say.  as 
did  Tom,  God  helping,  no  more  shall  an  oath  pass  my  lips.  I 
do  not  believe  it  will  be  best  to  offer  a  smoker  in  this  case, 
but  I  do  believe  that  we  can  help  each  other  by  lettirig  our 
names  come  out  before  the  world,  as  our  friends  have  done  in 
the  Tobacco  Column,  in  Gleanings.     We  each  and  all,  no 


17<5  MF.KKVBAXKS  AND  HIS  NEIUIliiOK. 

matter  what  we  believe  in  our  own  hearts,  know  it  is  bad  and 
wrong  to  take  the  name,  either  in  anger  or  sport,  of  Him  who 
created  and  reigns  over  this  vast  universe.    Is  it  not  so  V 

One  of  the  boys  took  Tom's  horse ;  and  as  he  got  out,  they 
noticed  he  had  a  long  bundle  in  his  hand.  It  looked  about 
like  this  :— 


TOM'S   BUNDLE. 

u  Well,  friends,  John  has  shown  you  his  smoker,  and  now  I 
have  got  something  to  show  you.  Mother,  will  you  please 
bring  the  lamp  V    There,  Mary  can  hold  it.*' 

I  don't  know  but  I  ought  not  to  tell  of  it ;  but  just  then  it 
occurred  to  Mary  what  a  handsome  fellow  Tom  the  doctor's 
boy  was.  dressed  up  just  as  he  had  come  from  the  city,  as  he 
singled  her  out  to  hold  the  lamp,  which  he  handed  her  with  a 
sort  of  good-natured  look.  She  remembered  what  he  had 
said  about  going  to  Sunday-school ;  and  a  prayer  involuntarily 
rose  in  her  heart,  that  God  might  keep  him  there.  In  a 
twinkling  the  straps  that  held  the  bundle  were  removed ;  and 
as  the  covering  dropped  off,  there  appeared  four  light  sticks, 
enveloped  in  folds  of  pink  mosquito-bar.  With  a  dexterity 
that  compared  well  with  that  shown  by  John  in  putting  in  his 
smoker-spring,  Tom  spread  the  sticks,  and  a  graceful  little 
tent  for  putting  over  a  bee-hive  wras  displayed  to  their  view% 
as  seen  on  next  page. 

It  is  made  by  taking  four  basswood  sticks,  about  Si  feet 
long,  and  fastening  them  together  like  letter  X's,  with  a  good 
strong  screw  where  they  cross.  A  piece  of  good  strong  tarred 
twine,  or  small  rope,  makes  the  ridge-pole,  as  seen  in  the  en- 
graving, and  this  same  twine  unites  the  sticks  at  their  tops. 
The  mosquito-bar  is  sewed  into  a  sort  of  bag,  having  the  same 
strong  twine  all  around  its  lower  edges,  and  down  each  of 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR 


the  four  corners.  At  these  corners  are  also  sewed  metal  rings, 
•and  these  rings,  when  pulled  down  strongly,  will  loop  over 
■screw-heads,  near  the  lower  ends  of  the  four  sticks.  When 
thus  looped  over,  the  sticks  are  bent  or  bowed,  so  as  to  give 
room  in  the  top  of  the  tent.  The  whole  structure  weighed  less 
than  five  pounds,  and  yet  it  gave  room  inside  for  a  hive,  and 
to  do  all  necessary  work.  Every  one  who  lifted  it  burst  forth 
in  exclamations  of  surprise.  The  basswood  sticks  are  lfxf 
at  the  lower  end,  and  tapered  to  lxl  at  their  upper  end, 
with  the  corners  taken  off,  to  make  them  as  light  as  possible. 
Where  the  bend  comes  they  are  scraped  a  little  thinner. 


THE    N'KW    FOLDING   BEE-HIVE   TENT. 

"Why,  Tom,  where  in  the  vyorl  1  did  yon  get  this  ?  who  in- 
vented it  V  came  from  all. 

"Well,"  said  Tom.  "1  will  tell  you.  On  my  way  home,  I 
came  around  by  the  '  Home  of  the  Honey- Bees."  and  this  tent 


178  MERRVBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

was  one  that  Ernest  and  John  have  just  invented.  I  bought 
it  for  an  even  SI. 25 ;  and  when  that  hive  of  hybrids  gets  cross 
again,  I  will  just  clap  the  tent  over  them,  and  see  if  they  will 
sting  anybody." 

"But,"  said  Tom's  father,  "what  is  to  prevent  the  wind 
from  blowing  it  away  V  It  is  so  light,  the  least  breeze  would 
be  likely  to  move  it." 

•l  Oh !  but  see  here."  said  Tom.  4i  You  did  not  notice  these 
anchors."  And,  stooping  down,  he  took  hold  of  a  bent  wire- 
nail  (shown  at  one  corner  of  the  cut),  and  turned  it  so  it  could 
be  pushed  into  the  ground.  The  opposite  corner-post,  or  leg, 
was  spread  out  a  little,  and  pushed  in  also,  and  it  then  "  held 
its  ground  "  very  firmly.  When  not  in  use,  these  nails  turned 
so  as  to  have  their  points  up  against  the  side,  entirely  out 
of  the  way. 

••And,"  continued  Tom,  "they  say  it  is  just  the  thing  to 
put  over  a  colony  when  it  is  being  robbed.  You  clap  the- 
thing  right  over  the  hive,  anchor  it  down,  and  when  the  rob- 
ber-bees come  out  of  their  hives  they  will  cluster  in  the  peak 
of  the  tent.  After  a  little  you  lift  the  tent  up.  tip  it  upside 
down,  let  the  robbers  out,  and  clap  it  right  over  the  hive  again, 
and  keep  on  until  all  the  robbers  are  out  of  the  hive.  But 
Ernest  and  John  say  there  is  a  better  way.  Make  a  hole  right 
in  the  peak  of  the  tent,  and  all  the  robber-bees  will  bump  their 
heads  around  until  they  get  to  the  peak  of  the  tent,  and,  find- 
ing the  hole,  they  will  escape,  and  not  a  bee  will  smother." 

•wBut,"  said  Mary.  tk  won't  these  robbers  go  right  down 
into  the  hole  again  ?  " 

"  Oh,  no !  "  said  Tom ;  "  they  say,  at  the  Home  of  the  Honey- 
Bees,  a  bee  hasn't  got  sense  enough  to  go  back  down  through 
the  hole  from  which  he  has  just  escaped.  He  will  bump- 
around  the  outside  of  the  tent,  and  finally  go  off  in  disgust." 

"That  would  be  a  capital  thing,"  said  Tom's  father,  "to 
get  the  bees  out  of  the  sections.    Why,  all  you  would  have  to 


MEKKYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  179 

do  would  be  to  shake  as  many  of  the  bees  out  of  the  crate  of 
sections  as  possible,  and  place  them  under  this  tent.  The  few 
remaining  bees  would  soon  leave  the  sections,  fly  to  the  top  of 
the  tent,  and  escape  through  that  hole,  but  not  a  robber-bee 
could  gain  access  to  the  sections.  Boys,"  he  continued.  "  you 
•can  call  that  my  invention." 

li  But  look  here,''  said  Tom ;  "  they  tell  me,  at  the  Home  of 
the  Honey-Bees,  that  they  had  used  it  for  this  very  purpose, 
And  that  it  had  worked  just  exactly  as  you  said  it  would."" 

"  Well  now."'  said  Tom's  father,  u  I  thought  I  was  prior  to 
any  one  else  in  getting  bees  out  of  the  sections  by  the  use  of 
the  tent." 

"  You  say  John  and  Ernest  invented  the  tent,"  said  Mary. 
"  We  have  read  about  Ernest,  but  who  is  John  ?  " 

"  Why,  John  is  the  young  man  who  has  charge  of  the  api- 
ary. He  tias  a  brother  Albert,  and  they  call  them  k  the  young 
Canadians ; "  and  I  tell  you,  but  you  just  ought  to  hear  the  two 
boys  sing.  Here  is  one  of  the  songs  that  I  wrote  off.  and  per- 
haps some  of  us  will  learn  to  sing  it  one  of  these  days."  Un- 
like friend  Merrybanks.  Tom  picked  it  out  of  the  right  pocket 
the  first  time  trying,  and  this  is  what  he  read  :— 

SOME   POLKS. 

Some  folks  drink  their  wine— 

Some  folks  do,  some  folks  do: 

And  think  it  very  fine- 
But  that's  not  me  nor  you. 

CHORUS AFTER  EACH  VERSE. 
Three  cheerarfor  water,  water  pore  from  every  rill  that  flows. 
And  three  times  three  for  the  hoys  in  the  temperance  cause. 

Some  folks  take  a  •'  smile"— 

Some  folks  do.  some  folks  do; 
And  thus  the  time  beguile— 

But  that's  not  me  nor  you. 

Some  folk-  often  try- 
Some  Folks  do.  some  folk-  do, 

To    ■  sample"  on  the  sly— 

But  that's  not  me  nor  vu 


180  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

Some  folks  get  home  late- 
Some  folks  do.  some  folks  do: 

And  don't  walk  very  straight— 
But  that's  not  me  nor  you. 

Some  folks  lose  their  cash- 
Some  folks  do.  some  folks  do. 

Investing  in  such  trash- 
But  that's  not  me  nor  you. 


CHAPTER  XXXIV. 

The  hand  of  the  diligent  shall  bear  rule;  but  the  slothful  shall  be  un- 
der tribute.— Pro  v.  12: 24. 

4  4  mEN  cents  a  dozen  V  -1 

"  Yes,  sir,  that  is  the  price,"  said  John,  as  he  hand- 
ed them  to  the  man,  and  the  ears  were  so  large  that 
lie  had  a  pretty  good  armful.  You  see,  it  was  the  product  of 
that  cornfield ;  tor  under  the  influence  of  the  clean  culture 
John  had  given  it,  and  stimulated  by  the  phosphate,  he  had  a 
most  beautiful  piece  of  coin,  and  he  had  grown  to  love  it  al- 
most as  much  as  he  did  the  ducks.  Not  a  weed  was  to  be 
seen  in  it;  and  with  the  aid  of  the  horse,  the  ground  had  been 
kept  so  mellow  that  John  could  kick  up  the  soft  dirt  with 
his  bare  feet  even  now,  in  any  part  of  the  field.  How  it  did 
grow  !  Almost  the  first  thing  in  the  morning  he  looked  at  was 
the  bright,  clean,  green  leaves,  and  he  often  wandered  amongf 
its  rustling  foliage  just  the  last  thing  before  he  went  to  bed 
at  night.  -  In  fact,  this  cornfield  came  very  near  verifying  the 
saying,  that  "  a  thing  of  beauty  is  a  joy  for  ever ; "  for  if  John 
was  ever  tempted  to  be  discouraged,  or  to  get  "blue,"  he 
could  always  turn  with  comfort  to  the  sight  of  that  growing 
field.  Now  that  the  ears  were  just  right  for  roasting,  their 
enormous  size  made  them  eagerly  taken  by  the  villagers,  and 


MERRYBANK8  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  181 

John  kept  a  neat  basketful  in  a  conspicuous  place,  where 
passers-by  could  see  it.  labeled.  M  Only  10  cents ;  basket  and 
all.  15."  Tom  printed  it  in  plain  figures  on  some  cheap  cards ; 
and  as  often  as  one  card  got  soiled,  a  new  one  was  put  on  to 
the  handle  of  the  basket,  so  it  always  looked  nice,  clean,  and 
tempting.  The  baskets  cost  o0  cents  a  dozen  in  the  city,  so 
he  made  a  small  profit  on  them,  and  they  sold  often  enough  so 
he  had  always  a  bright  clean  one  in  sight.  The  Jones  family 
had  pretty  well  learned  that  the  best  way  to  make  things 
tempting  they  wished  to  sell  was  to  have  them  always  looking 
fresh  and  clean.     Who  wouldn't  have  a  cornfield  ? 

At  the  last  cultivating,  John  scattered  turnip  -  seeds  in 
the  soft  earth  one  day,  just  before  a  shower,  and  now  the 
bright  green  leaves  of  the  turnips  were  getting  to  be  another 
theme  of  interest  to  him,  and  the  temptation  was  so  great  to 
stir  the  soft  earth  around  them  that  they  got  pretty  well 
hoed,  even  if  they  were  sown  broadcast,  for  they  some  way 
seemed  to  like  to  be  hoed,  about  as  well  as  the  old  horse  liked 
to  be  brushed  and  curried.  How  many  of  these  boys  and  girls 
to  whom  I  am  talking  have  a  garden  ?  Is  it  nice  and  clean r 
and  do  not  your  flowers  like  to  be  hoed  ? 

Well,  it  was  not  the  corn  alone  that  was  thriving,  but  the 
bees  all  about  Onionville  had  been  giving  an  unexpected  crop 
of  honey  this  year,  during  the  month  of  August.  The  hives 
were  full,  the  bees  were  full  and  good-natured,  and  easy  to 
handle,  and  I  am  not  sure  but  that  it  had  some  effect  in  mak- 
ing their  owners  easy  to  handle  too.  Mr.  Merrybanks  has  got 
on  a  new  hobby,  of  selling  honey  to  the  people  around  home, 
instead  of  sending  it  off  to  the  cities,  and  he  has  been  watch- 
ing the  market,  and  watching  customers.  He  not  only  watch- 
es customers  while  they  are  making  purchases,  but  he  watches 
them  as  they  go  home  ;  and  it  is  reported  he  has  made  some 
excuse  to  follow  them  home,  just  to  see  what  they  did  with 
the  honey,  and  how  they  managed  it.      I  don't  suppose  he 


182  ME KKV BANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

made  himself  intrusive  at  all,  for  Mr.  Merrybanks  is  a  general 
favorite  all  around  Onionville  ;  and  although  people  do  smile 
a  little  at  the  mention  of  his  name,  they  usually  smile  more 
when  they  see  his  shining  face,  especially  when  it  beams  with 
the  reflection  of  some  new  idea  he  has  just  got  into  his  head. 
Well,  he  has  an  idea  in  his  head  now ;  and  as  he  has  been  fol- 
lowing others  around  considerably,  suppose  we  follow  him  a 
iittle.  Although  it  is  only  half-past  five  in  the  morning,  he  is 
hastening  over  to  his  neighbor  Jones,  and.  as  he  expected, 
rinds  the  family  all  up,  dressed,  and  faces  washed.  John  is 
admiring  his  cornfield  as  usual;  his  father  is  taking  care  of 
the  horse,  and  Mary  and  her  mother  are  getting  breakfast. 
They  soon  gather  around  him,  and  he  commences. 

"  Friends,  we  must  do  something  to  make  our  packages 
honey-tight.  Since  we  have  got  those  nice  new  colored  labels, 
the  mischief  is  worse  than  it  was  before,  for  everybody  who 
picks  up  a  pail  of  honey  tips  it  up  the  very  first  thing,  to  get 
a  better  look  at  the  label,  and  then  it  oozes  around  the  cover, 
and  drizzles  down  over  their  clothing  or  on  the  floor,  daubing 
and  making  a  muss  that  is  more  trouble  to  clean  up  than  the 
honey  is  worth.  Very  often  the  pail  of  honey  is  set  in  the 
huggy  to  be  earned  home ;  and  in  this  hot  weather  the  motion 
throws  it  over  on  all  sides ;  and  when  it  is  to  be  taken  out,  the 
buggy  and  pail  are  all  daubed,  and  it  is  a  regular  nuisance,  I 
tell  you.  I  heard  a  woman  tell  her  husband  the  other  day, 
she  wished  he  would  never  bring  another  drop  of  honey  on  the 
premises.     It  wras  just  on  account  of  this  daubing. ,-> 

Here  friend  M.  began  hunting  in  his  pockets  as  usual.  Fi- 
nally he  produced  a  sample  of  the  ordinary  tops  and  bottoms 
for  a  quart  fruit-can. 

"  Why,"  said  John,  at  this  juncture.  wk  we  can  make  pails  of 
them  just  as  easily,  or  easier,  than  the  way  we  now  make 
them ;  and  by  cementing  the  cap  on,  we  have  got  it  sure." 
and  he  got  up  from  the  doorstep  in  a  hurry. 


MERKYEANK8  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  183 

"Hold  on,  John."  said  his  father;  "let  us  see  what  they 
cost  first.'' 

"  Just  SI. 75  per  gross,  in  ten-gross  lots,*'  said  friend  M., 
and  then  he  took  from  his  coat -sleeve,  where  it  had  been 
concealed,  a  piece  of  tin  rolled  up  so  as  to  form  the  body,  and, 
clapping  on  the  top  and  bottom,  the  can  was  complete  in  every 
respect,  all  but  the  solder. 

"  But,''  said  John's  father,  k-  ihe  joints  are  not  close  enough 
to  solder." 

At  this  juncture  Freddie  came  running  up  with  a  queer- 
looking  machine  in  his  hand,  and  gave  it  to  his  father,  with 
the  remark,  l*  Mamma  said  she  was  pretty  sure  you  would 
want  that  too."' 

"Well,  I  am  very  grateful  to  you  and  mamma  for  your 
thoughtfulness." 

While  they  are  passing  it  around,  we  will  take  a  look  at  it 
too. 


THE    NEW   MACHINE    FOR    SOM>EKING   TIN    PA1I.S    AND   TIN    CANS. 

The  machine  is  put  into  the  opening  of  the  can  partly  closed 
^up.  and  it  is  so  made  that  when  it  is  pressed  down  it  expands, 


184  MEKKYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

bringing  the  body  closely  against  both  top  and  bottom,  and 
holding  the  seam  so  close  that  it  can  be  soldered  with  the 
greatest  ease,  thus  finishing  the  whole  can  at  one  single  oper- 
ation and  one  soldering. 

'-'  How  large  is  that  piece  of  tin  V  *" 

It  was  John's  father  who  asked  this,  for  he  always,  of  late 
at  least,  had  an  eye  for  the  main  chances. 

"  It  is  exactly  8^x  13f,  and  we  get  five  such  pieces  out  of  a 
14x20  sheet  of  tin,  and  I  can  get  them  already  cut  and  rolled, 
made  of  good  bright  tin,  for  $1.50  per  hundred.  Now,  with 
these  all  prepared  for  honey-pails  l  in  the  flat,1  as  they  might 
be  called,  Aunt  Lucinda  would  solder  them  up  like  '  smoke.' " 

"  How  much  does  a  pail  hold  like  those  you  have  there  ? '" 
said  John's  father. 

"It  is  D.  A.  Jones's  2i-lb.  pail,  such  as  was  described  in 
Gleanings  in  Bee  Culture,  and  they  sell  for  7  cents  each, 
or  $5.00  per  hundred,  with  bails  and  all  on." 

Below  we  give  you  a  picture  of  the  new  honey-pail  and  the 
pieces  of  which  it  is  composed. 


THE  NEW  HONEY-PAIL  TH.AT  WON'T  LEAK  OR  DAUB  WHEN  TURNED  OVER. 

The  ears,  it  will  be  observed,  are  made  simply  of  a  small 
bent  wire;  and,  in  fact,  a  common  pin,  bent  with  a  pair  of 
round-nosed  pliers,  makes  a  very  good  ear.  The  bail  is  made 
of  rather  small  coppered-iron  wire.  Of  course,  smaller  pails 
are  made  in  the  same  way. 

Before  noon  a  lot  of  pails  were  finished,  and  in  the  after- 


M  EH RY BANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  185 

noon  a  call  came  through  the  telephone  for  all  hands  to  come 
over  and  see  how  to  put  up  honey.  By  the  time  our  friends 
got  there  they  saw  quite  a  crowd  around  the  greenhouse, 
eagerly  watching  the  proceedings  within.  At  first,  Mrs.  Jones 
wondered  howr  it  was  that  everybody  was  outside,  which 
seemed  so  unlike  the  courtesy  with  which  our  friend  usually 
invited  all  the  neighbors  in  to  see  whatever  was  going  on ;  but 
after  stepping  inside  a  moment,  they  were  all,  except  John, 
glad  to  view  proceedings  from  the  outside  too.  It  was  because 
the  air  inside  was  like  a  brick  oven.  Although  our  friend  had 
on  the  lightest  clothing  possible,  he  was  sweating  ac  such  a 
rate  that  his  large  "  bandana  "  was  in  almost  constant  requi- 
sition. The  principal  part  of  the  greenhouse  was  occupied 
with  two  large  shallow  tin  vats,  having  a  honey-gate  in  one 
end  wrhich  was  slightly  lower  than  the  other.  These  were  the 
ripening,  or  evaporating  pans.  In  the  center  of  the  room,  at 
the  north  side,  was  a  queer  arrangement  of  five-cent  looking- 
glasses,  turned  at  such  an  angle  that  the  whole  of  them  re- 
flected the  rays  of  the  sun  on  a  tin  pan  of  wax,  and  the  heat 
was  so  great  as  to  keep  it  constantly  melted.  Into  this  pan  of 
wax  friend  M.  dipped  loose  cotton  strings,  and  then  hung  them 
up  to  cool,  something  as  we  used  to  dip  candles.  After  the 
strings  were  coated  sufficiently,  they  were  cut  off  the  proper 
lengths,  and  laid  in  a  bundle,  on  the  little  table  near  the 
gate  to  one  of  the  large  pans.  Now,  underneath  this  gate  was 
a  little  machine  that  looked  like  a  small  center  -  table,  but 
it  wTas  so  arranged  that  it  would  whirl  like  a  wheel,  when 
touched  by  the  finger.  That  it  might  run  easily  and  steadily, 
the  standard  that  held  the  top  was  pivoted  with  a  steel  point 
that  rested  on  a  piece  of  glass.  AVell,  a  cavity  was  turned  in 
the  wheel-like  top,  that  one  of  the  newT  honey-pails  would  just 
stand  in  while  it  was  being  filled  from  the  gate  over  it.  When 
full,  the  cap  was  pressed  down,  and  one  of  the  waxed  strings 
coiled  in  the  channel  running  around  it.    Of  course,  the  length 


186 


MEKRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 


of  these  waxed  strings  was  just  right  to  go  clear  around.  Now 
the  table  was  given  a  whirl,  can  and  all,  and  then  in  a  twink- 
ling a  large  sun-glass  was  swung  up,  by  means  of  an  arm  of 
wood  to  which  it  was  attached,  and  the  wax  on  the  string  set- 
tled down  so  as  to  make  a  most  beautiful,  glossy  joint,  and 
the  pail  was  set  away  to  give  place  to  another.  Honey-tum- 
blers were  filled  and  sealed  in  a  similar  way,  only  a  strip  of 
waxed  paper  was  used  instead  of  the  string,  and  the  burning- 
glass  was  made  to  throw  the  heat  on  the  outside  of  the  tin  cap, 
just  over  the  waxed  paper.  After  friend  Merrybanks  had  got 
quite  a  lot  of  tumblers  and  pails  filled  and  sealed  up,  he  placed 
them  on  a  neat  little  stand,  and  carried  out,  for  the  outsiders 
to  examine,  the  new  sealed  packages  of  honey.  Here  is  the 
picture  of  his  new  honey-stand  :— 


STAND    FOR    RETAILING   EXTRACTED    HONEY. 

•  '  And  is  it  really  a  fact,*'  said  the  doctor,  for  he  was  here 
too,  with  the  rest,  "  that  these  pails  and  jars  can  be  tumbled 
and  rolled  about,  and  no  honey  will  ooze  out  anywhere  ?  " 


MEKKYMANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  187 

"Roll  them  about  and  see."'  said  friend  M. ;  and.  suiting  tlie 
action  to  the  word,  they  were  tossed  down  on  the  grass,  and 
handed  around  among  the  lookers-on. 

"  But,'"  resumed  the  doctor.  "  why  do  you  work  down  there 
in  that  hot  place  ?  Is  it  just  because  the  honey  runs  so 
much  easier,  and  that  you  have  it  there  to  ripen  ? '" 

"That  is  not  all,  doctor.'" 

Friend  M.  here  took  a  tumbler  of  clear  limpid  basswood 
honey,  and,  holding  it  up  to  the  light,  opened  his  mouth  to 
speak;  but  just  at  this  juncture  Freddie  burst  into  the  crowd 
with— 

ki  O  father !  father !  Just  you  have  them  all  come  and  see 
how  the  bees  are  working  on  the  Symphoricarpus  vulgaris, 
Monarda punctata,  and  Scr of ularia  nodosa." 

At  this  sally  there  was  a  big  laugh  all  around,  and  the  doc- 
tor suggested  that  Freddie  had  better  come  and  live  with 
him  and  learn  to  be  a  doctor,  for  he  would  no  doubt  succeed 
in  mystifying  folks,  with  long  words,  even  if  he  didn't  get 
any  further. 

••  Well,  you  just  come  and  look  at  the  bees,  and  see  how  they 
work."*  persisted  Freddie,  not  at  all  dismayed  by  their  laughing. 

"  Come  on,  let's  go  and  see  the  bees  work  on  the  posies  with 
the  wonderful  long  names,  and  we'll  get  the  doctor  to  tell  us 
what  these  names  mean,'*  said  Jim,  who  had  just  driven  up 
with  a  wagon-load  of  nice  thin  walnut  lumber. 

•'All  right,*'  said  the  doctor;  "I  will  do  the  best  I  can. 
But  first  we  want  friend  Merrybanks  to  tell  us  why  he  seals 
up  the  honey  in  that  hot  room." 

Mr.  M.  again  held  the  tumbler  of  clear  honey  up  against  the 
sky  so  all  could  see  it ;  but  just  at  this  moment  the  wind  blew 
the  stable-door  open,  displaying  to  old  Dobbin  the  sight  of  his 
manger,  which  he  wisely  concluded  contained  oats,  as  it  often 
did,  and  he  made  a  vigorous  push  to  go  ahead.  In  doing  so 
the  wagon-wheel  ran  over  the  tip  of  the  dog's  tail,  ami   his 


188  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

quick  yelp  once  more  suddenly  interrupted  the  words  that 
were  forthcoming.  Jim  caught  the  horse,  however,  and  John 
patted  the  dog,  and  then  our  friend  proceeded  to  explain  that 
he  expected  any  honey  put  up  in  that  way  to  keep  as  clear  and 
limpid,  without  any  candying,  even,  all  winter  long,  as  the 
glassful  he  held  in  his  hand.    The  doctor  started. 

'•  1  low  hot  is  it  in  there  ?" 

"  About  150  ,  when  all  ventilation  is  cut  off. 

"And  that  heat,  while  it  does  not  injure  the  honey  in  the 
least,  will  effectually  keep  it  from  candying,  if  it  is  sealed 
from  the  air  while  it  is  in  there  ?  " 

"I  think  it  will." 

"It  is  precisely  the  same  way  the  bees  do  it  in  their  hives, 
to  prevent  capped  comb  honey  from  candying — evaporating  it 
down  thick,  by  the  heat  of  the  sun,  and  then  sealing  it  up 
with  beeswax,  when  it  is  just  right." 

"That  is  the  idea/* 

"  What  are  you  going  to  do  with  that  nice  walnut  lumber  ?" 

••  Make  cases  for  honey,  like  the  one  you  see  here."1 

"And  then  ?" 

"Locate  them,  one  in  each  country  grocery,  and  perhaps 
some  in  the  city,  and  then  keep  each  stand  supplied  with 
clear  liquid  honey  the  year  round. v 

"Why.  there  is  a  fortune  in  it." 

Just  here  it  was  discovered  that  Mary  was  evidently  want- 
ing to  say  something  to  the  doctor. 

"Well,  what  is  it,  Mary  ?  " 

"Please,  sir.  you  promised  to  tell  us  what  those  long  hard 
names  to  the  flowers  mean."* 

"Well,  Mary,  I  will  do  the  best  I  can.  Come,  let  us  go  and 
see— can  you  tell  it  all  again,  Freddie  ?  Well,  well  I  truly  the 
bees  are  swarming  on  the  plants.  Now,  Freddie,  give  us  the 
name  of  the  first  one,*"  said  the  doctor. 

"  Syrnphorkarpus  vulgaris."1 


MERKY HANKS  AND  HIS  NL1GHBOK. 


188 


You  see,  Freddie  had  tended  the  plants,  and  read  about 
them,  and  it  was  no  trouble  for  him  to  remember  even  the  bo- 
tanical names.  In  fact.  I  rather  think  he  liked  to  say  over 
those  long  crooked  names,  for  you  know  there  are  some  peo- 
ple and  some  boys  and  girls  who  have  a  natural  love  of  words 
and  language ;  and  as  it  is  our  duty  to  cultivate  these  natural 
gifts.  Freddie's  father  had  rather  encouraged  this  taste,  even 
at  some  risk  that  his  boy  should  become  fond  of  showing  off 
his  learning.  The  doctor  picked  off  a  sprig  of  the  plant,  and 
held  it  up ;  but  so  eager  were  the  bees  for  it,  they  still  contin- 
ued hovering  over  it  while  it  remained  in  his  hand.  Here  is 
what  the  sprig  looked  like  :— 


£    \$*  4g 


SYMPHORICARPU8    VULGARIS. 

"  Well,  let  us  see.""  said  the  doctor.  "  Sym  means  together. 
or  crowded  ;  pherein  means  to  bear,  or  carry,  and  karptts  means 
fruit;  so  the  name  means,  we  might  say,  "bearing  fruits 
crowded  together.'  Does  it  look  any  thing  like  that,  chil- 
dren ?" 

••  Yes.**  "  Yes.""  came  from  all  sides,  for  the  berries.and  flow- 
ers were  so  crowded  on  the  whole  plant,  they  touched  each 
other  almost  in  one  solid  mass. 

••Well,*"  resumed  the  doctor,  "did  any  of  you  ever  see  an 
old  arithmetic,  where  it  said  in  it.  -vulgar  fractions,"  where 
they  nowadays  say  'common  fractions"  ?  " 

The  children  had  not  seen  any  such  books,  but  many  of  the 
older  ones  had.  "  Well,  vulgar  really  means  common,  or 
every-day.  and  the  vulgaris  means  that  it  is  the  common  plant 


190  MERRY  BANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

of  this  name,  bearing  fruits  crowded  together.  You  know  the- 
plant  looks  very  much  like  the  snowdrop  of  our  gardens,  only 
the  berries  are  small  and  red  (it  is  often  called  '  coral-berry' ), 
instead  of  large  and  white:  and  the  snowdrop  is  really  a  Sym- 
phoricarpus  also.1' 

"  Symphoricarpus  racemosus,'1'  volunteered  Freddie,  who  had 
been  deeply  interested  in  the  talk. 

"  Now  for  the  next,"  said  the  doctor— kU  Monarda  punctata  T 
Why,  this  is  really  the  celebrated  horsemint  that  gave  that 
man  in  Texas  seven  hundred  pounds  of  honey  from  a  single- 
colony.    Did  you  know  that,  Freddie  ? " 

"Yes,  sir,  I  guess  I  do;  and  you  just  ought  to  come  down 
by  the  carp-pond  and  see  the  bed  that  me  and  pa'1 — (here  his 
mother  took  hold  of  his  ear  and  whispered,  "Pa  and  I")— 
"  have  got.    I  tell  you,  but  they  are  growing  just  splendid." 

"Almost  as  nice  as  John's  corn,""  suggested  Jim. 

Here  the  doctor,  with  a  quick  movement,  pulled  out  his 
watch,  and  declared  he  could  not  stop  a  minute  more,  but 
would  tell  them  about  monarda  next  time.  And  I  think,  my 
little  friends,  I  will  have  a  picture  of  it  when  next  time 
comes.    So.  good-by  ! 


CHAPTER  XXXV. 

THE  green  corn  was  all  gathered  and  the  stalks  cut  upT 
and  the  white  beans  pulled  and  hung  on  stakes  stuck 
into  the  ground  until  they  were  now  dry,  and  ready  to 
thrash  out.  The  ears  that  ripened  first  were  saved  for  seed, 
and  these  were  now  braided  and  hung  up  in  the  loft  in  the 
barn;  for  John  had  had  some  trouble  in  getting  his  corn  to 
grow  at  the  first  planting,  and  friend  M.  had  told  him  that 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  191 

there  was  no  way  in  the  world  so  sure  for  corn  saved  for  seed, 
as  to  hang  it  up  by  the  husks.  But,  were  not  those  ears  whop- 
pers ?  Why,  the  cob  itself,  after  all  the  corn  was  shelled  off, 
was  about  as  large  as  an  ordinary  ear  of  corn.  And  were  not 
those  turnips  handsome  ?  Their  bright  green  foliage  was 
beautiful  for  the  eye  to  look  upon,  were  there  nothing  else; 
but  as  the  autumn  winds  waved  the  leaves  to  one  side  a  little, 
a  bright  purple  bulb  was  shown,  of  such  size  that  it  seemed 
almost  incredible  they  could  have  grown  in  so  short  a  time. 
How  bright  and  smooth  they  were  ! 

"  Mother,  did  you  ever  see  any  thing  so  handsome  ?  "  said 
John,  as  he  called  her  attention  to  one  after  another,  as  he 
gently  pushed  the  bright  green  leaves  to  one  side. 

"Shall  we  not  cook  some  of  them,  and  see  if  they  are  as 
good  as  they  look  ?1'  said  she. 

"Why,  mother,  they  are  growing  so  fast  I  can  hardly  think 
of  pulling  them  just  yet ;  why,  you  have  no  idea  how  they 
grow."  And  although  there  was  hardly  a  weed  in  the  whole 
cornfield,  John  gave  them  another  good  hoeing,  just  because 
he  loved  to  fuss  around  them  and  stir  the  soft  mellow  ground. 
Besides  the  turnips  and  corn  and  white  beans — by  the  way, 
those  white  beans  John  raised  were  like  the  corn,  a  little 
ahead  of  any  thing  the  people  around  there  had  ever  heard  of 
bpfore.  You  see,  John  wrote  to  a  city  seedsman,  whom  Mr. 
Merry  banks  knew  to  be  a  good  Christian  man,  and  told  him 
he  wanted  the  best  beans  that  could  be  found  for  baking,  for 
a  lunch  ;  and  even  though  the  seed  did  cost  a  little  extra,  just 
as  soon  as  these  beans  would  fairly  shell  they  had  them  boiled 
and  baked.  They  were  dry  and  mealy,  and  so  sweet  that  one 
might  imagine  it  were  chestnuts  he  were  eating,  instead  of 
boiled  and  baked  beans.  I  tell  you  they  got  to  be  a  great  dish 
in  Onionville.  They  had  in  their  lunch-room  small  tin  dishes 
that  the  beans  were  baked  in,  and  they  sold  them  for  the 
insignificant  sum  of  three  cents  a  dish.      Why.  you  would  feel 


193  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

as  if  you  had  a  pretty  fair  dinner,  after  having  had  just  one 
of  these  lunches  of  baked  beans.  A  tiny  bit  of  nice  pork  was 
in  the  center  of  each  little  tin  dish,  and  it  may  be  that  nobody 
else  knew  how  to  bake  them  as  did  the  little  postmistress, 
John's  mother.  Have  you  had  your  supper,  my  friend  ? 
Well,  I'm  glad  you  haven't,  for  you  will  find  my  eubject  all 
the  more  interesting,  doubtless. 

I  started  to  tell  you  that  it  wasn't  corn  and  beans  and  tur- 
nips alone  that  grew  in  that  wonderful  cornfield.  No,  sir,  'ee. 
There  were  pumpkin  pies  too.  Not  that  the  pies  grew  in  the 
field,  but  the  pumpkins  did,  and  the  pies  grew  in  the  fingers 
of  the  schoolma'am,  and  weren't  they  just  the  thing  to  finish 
the  lunch  after  a  dish  of  those  baked  beans  ?;  Mr.  Merrybanks 
always  wanted  a  dish  of  those  baked  beans,  a  pumpkin  pie, 
and  a  glass  of  milk  for  his  dinner,  and  the  whole  cost  only  an 
even  dime  at  the  postoftice  lunch-room,  or  Temperance  Hotel, 
as  many  still  persisted  in  calling  it.  The  doctor  took  the  same 
bill  of  fare,  only  he  wanted  buttermilk  instead  of  sweet  milk. 
He  said  it  was  a  little  more  on  the  lemonade  line  for  hot 
weather. 

By  the  way,  did  I  tell  you  that  the  doctor  had  lately  taken  to 
going  to  meeting  ?  Well,  he  has,  and  Tom  goes  too,  and  be- 
haves himself  like  a  man.  Onionville  will  be  proud  of  Tom 
some  day,  see  if  it  isn't.  Yes,  and  the  doctor  and  the*  minis- 
ter are  getting  to  be  very  good  friends  too.  Singular,  isn't  it  ? 
I  have  been  told  that  the  doctor  has  several  times  asked  the 
pastor  to  go  to  see  some  of  his  very  sick  patients,  and  that, 
when  they  kneeled  down  and  prayed  that  God  might  give 
them  life  eternal  in  the  world  to  come,  as  well  as  peace  and 
rest  in  this  world,  that  the  doctor  shed  tears,  and  asked  his 
friend  to  pray  that  lie  might  have  more  than  human  wisdom 
in  his  work  in  looking  after  the  comfort  and  welfare  of  the 
sick  and  dying.  The  doctor  doesn't  swear  now,  I  need  hardly 
tell  you,  and  more  than  one  heart  was  rejoiced  to  feel  that 


MERKYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  193 

their  family  physician  was  getting  to  be  a  man  of  prayer,  rath- 
er than  one  of  oaths  and  blasphemy.  Readers,  what  sort  of  a 
man  is  your  doctor  V 

John  had  some  nice  garden -tools,  and  he  prided  himself 
some  on  keeping  them  nice.  Do  you  ask  if  he  was  not  the  boy 
that  was  so  woefully  careless  when  we  first  met  him  ?  Well, 
yes  ;  he  was.  but  you  see  somehow  he  got  over  the  most  of  it. 
Since  he  had  the  experience  in  the  duck  business,  and  got  in- 
terested in  agriculture,  he  is  hardly  the  same  boy.  He  had  a 
new  hoe  and  spade  that  he  bought  with  his  own  money ;  and 
as  soon  as  bought,  he,  by  the  advice  of  friend  Merry  banks, 
took  them  to  the  grindstone  and  made  them  almost  as  sharp 
as  so  many  axes ;  in  fact,  either  one  of  them  would  cut  wood 
very  well. 

••What  is  the  use  of  that?*'  said  some  of  the  neighbors; 
"  on  your  sandy  and  stony  soil  you  will  spoil  the  sharp  edge 
in  a  few  minutes. r 

•Xever  you  mind  their  talk,*1  said  friend  M.;  tk  you  and  I 
have  got  two  or  three  ideas  in  our  heads,  haven't  we,  John?  " 

The  spade  and  hoe  were  first  warmed  by  the  fire  until  hot 
enough  to  melt  tallow,  and  then  all  the  bright  steel  was  care- 
fully greased.  It  was  now  warmed  again,  until  it  had  taken 
up  all  the  oil  it  would  hold.  The  woodwork  was  now  treated 
to  a  good  painting  with  crude  petroleum,  some  of  which  Mr. 
Merrybanks  always  kept  on  hand.  One  thing  more,  and  the 
tools  were  ready  for  business.  With  all  the  care,  the  edges 
would  get  bruised  and  dulled,  and  so  a  nice  fine  flat  file  was 
provided,  with  a  gcod  serviceable  handle,  and  this  was  to  put 
the  edges  in  order,  as  often  as  they  needed  it.  The  next  thing 
was  to  have  the  tools  in  some  handy  place,  so  one  need  never 
hunt  for  them.  My  boy,  did  you  ever  hunt  for  the  hoe  or 
spade  or  ax  ?  Well,  if  you  didn't,  may  be  you  have  heard  of 
folks  who  did.  Sometimes  a  day's  work  is  almost  spoiled  for 
want  of  a  tool  that  somebody  has  left  out  in  the  weeds.    Our 


194  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

two  friends  fixed  a  sort  of  tall  box,  open  at  the  bottom  and  on 
one  side,  in  which  the  tools  could  be  quickly  hung,  on  some 
large  stout  nails  driven  into  the  back  on  purpose.  This  box 
was  fastened  against  the  house  near  the  door,  so  when  John 
went  out  in  the  morning  he  could  always  pick  up  the  tool  he 
wanted,  in  an  instant.  One  day,  the  doctor,  as  he  passed, 
chanced  to  get  his  eye  on  the  bright  tools. 

"Look  here,  John,  I  want  to  know  what  makes  that  spade 
so  bright.  Is  it  because  you  use  it  so  much,  or  don't  use  it  at 
all?" 

"Neither,  sir.  It  is  because  I  take  good  care  of  it  while  I 
use  it,  and  after  I  put  it  up.  See?*'  And  John  spaded  it 
into  a  flower-bed  near  by  ;  and  as  he  took  it  out  of  the  mellow 
soil,  a  little  dirt  adhered  to  it.  "  Now  you  see,  that  by  passing 
my  hand  over  it,  it  is  so  bright  the  dirt  easily  slides  off ;  well, 
after  I  am  done  work,  or  even  when  I  stop  for  dinner,  I  just 
slide  my  hand  over  it,  and  there  it  is,  bright,  clean,  and  free 
from  rust."  As  John  spoke  he  kept  passing  his  fingers  over 
the  bright  tool  as  if  he  loved  it;  and  I  believe  it  is  a  fact,  that 
fine  workmen  are  in  the  habit  of  getting  a  sort  of  love  for  a 
favorite  tool,  if  that  is  the  proper  word  for  it.  A  hammer, 
a  saw,  or  an  ax,  is  often  set  store  by  in  this  way,  especially 
if  the  steel  be  found  choice  in  quality  and  temper;  and  such 
men  are  very  often  unjustly  termed  close  or  stingy,  because 
they  refuse  to  lend  such  tools  to  the  average  neighbor.  I  tell 
you,  friends,  you  have  no  business  asking  such  a  man  to  lend 
his  tools.  John  had  the  true  secret  of  it.  The  way  to  have 
nice  tools  is  to  use  them  carefully,  and  take  care  of  them. 
When  John  worked  for  any  of  the  farmers  around  there,  he 
always  took  his  own  hoe,  and  very  soon  he  began  to  be  ottered 
25  cents  more  a  day  than  other  boys  who  came  with  rusty 
hoes,  or  no  hoe  at  all 

"Very  good,"  said  the  doctor,  "your  reasoning  is  sound, 
John,  and  I  hope  we  may  all  profit  l»y  your  example;  but  I 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  195 

just  stopped  to  say,  that  I  shall  have  a  little  leisure  this  after- 
noon, and  I  will  tell  you  more  about  the  names  of  those  hon- 
ey-plants, if  any  of  you  care  to  call  on  Freddie  this  afternoon, 
say  at  8  o'clock."' 

As  the  people  of  Onionville  were  getting  to  be  quite  a  pro- 
gressive people,  and  as  it  was  a  rather  pleasant  place  to  go, 
quite  a  little  gathering  was  found  at  friend  Merrybanks'  at 
the  appointed  time. 

When  they  got  there,  they  found  the  doctor  trying  to  ex- 
plain to  Mary  why  the  botanical  names  of  plants  were  given 
in  the  dead  languages. 

"But  after  all.'*  said  Mary,  "why  do  the  botanists  and  doc- 
tors use  such  dreadful  words  ?  why  not  use  simple  English 
names  when  they  are  so  much  easier  ?  Why,  one  day,  when  I 
was  sick,  you  told  me  you  would  give  me  some  aqua  jmra ;  and 
when  I  saw  you  pump  it  out  of  the  well,  I  knew  you  meant 
pure  water.'' 

The  burst  of  laughter  which  followed  caused  the  doctor  to 
look  rather  confused ;  but  he  stooped  down  and  picked  up  a 
smooth  pine  board,  and  wrote  the  word  cinq  on  it. 

••Mary."  said  he,  "what  does  that  word  mean  V 

••  I  don't  know  :  I  can't  even  pronounce  it." 

"That  is  just  what  a  German,  or  an  Italian,  or  a  Spaniard, 
or  anybody  else  who  knows  nothing  of  French,  would  say." 

The  doctor  then  made  a  large  figure  5  under  the  word  cinq, 
and  said,  "  It  means  that.    Do  you  know  what  that  is  ?  " 

•"Five!"  exclaimed  Mary. 

••Now."  said  the  doctor,  '-were  I  to  show  this  figure  to  a 
German,  Hungarian,  Swede.  Dane.  Italian,  Spaniard,  French- 
man, Bohemian,  and  a  dozen  more  Europeans,  speaking  each 
a  different  language,  all  would  understand  the  same  thing, 
for  we  all  use  the  same  characters  to  represent  numbers.  And 
so  it  is.  too,  in  regard  to  scientific  terms,  which  are  drawn 
from  the  Greek  and  Latin  languages;   these  languages  are 


196  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

used  by  all  scientific  men  in  Europe  and  America,  and  hence 
one  can  understand  the  medical  and  botanical  terms  used  by 
the  learned  men  of  the  world.  The  convenience  of  this  ar- 
rangement is  beyond  all  calculation.  The  drugs  I  get  from 
France  are  marked  with  a  Latin  name,  as  a  general  thing ; 
but  if  they  were  labeled  in  French,  what  would  I  know  about 
them  ?  " 

u  I  confess,"  said  Mary,  "  I  showed  my  lack  of  information 
when  I  was  so  impatient  at  these  long  words.  Now  I  shall 
study  their  meaning  as  hard  as  Freddie  has  done,  and  try  to 
surpass  him." 

"  All  right,"  said  Jim,  "  we  all  see  through  it  just  as  plainly 
as  the  woman  did  when  the  bottom  fell  out  of  the  tub.  Go  on 
with  the  jaw-breaking  words,  and  we  won't  object  any  more, 
providing  you  tell  us  about  the  horse-meat  honey  that  weighs 
12  lbs.  to  the  gallon,  and  150  lbs.  to  the  hive  at  that." 

" Horse-meat  honey!"  echoed  a  score  of  voices;  "why, 
Jim,  what  in  the  world  do  you  mean  ?  " 

"Why,  that  is  the  kind  they  get  down  in  Texas;  haven't 
you  read  about  it  in  the  papers  ?  " 

If  it  hadn't  been  for  a  sort  of  comical  look  in  Jim's  face, 
they  might  some  of  them  have  imagined  he  had  got  back  into 
some  of  his  old  habits  again ;  but  there  was  no  trace  of  any 
thing  of  the  sort  in  his  bright  face  as  he  answered,  "  Well,  it 
must  be  you  folks  don't  read  the  papers.  Look  here."  And 
he  pulled  a  Cincinnati  evening  paper  from  his  pocket,  and 
stood  up  among  the  crowd  and  read  this  from  the  convention 
report : 

J.  E.  Lane  [Lay!  of  Texas  exhibited  some  spring-flowers  honey  and 
"horse-meat"  honey.  The  bees  will  yield  150  pounds  to  the  colony;  the 
"horse-meat"  sells  readily  there,  and  weighs  exactly  12  pounds  to  the 
gallon. 

"  Why,  the  reporter  got  it '  meat '  instead  of  '  mint,'  "  said 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  19T 

friend  Merrybanks ;  "they  said  'horsemint  honey,'  and  he 
got  it  'horsemeat''  honey.'' 

All  had  to  look  at  Jim's  paper,  and  see  if  it  were  really  so, 
and  then  Jim  suggested  they  should  have  a  convention  then 
and  there,  for  they  could  certainly  tell  mint  from  meat,  even 
the  youngest  of  them.  And  they  did,  and  friend  Merrybanks 
was  president,  John  Jones  treasurer,  and  Thomas  Snyder 
secretary. 

Jim  suggested  that  nobody  in  Onionville  knew  any  such 
person  as  Thomas  Snyder,  although  everybody  knew  "  Tom, 
the  doctor's  boy,"  quite  well. 

"Jim,  you  keep  still,  or  we  will  put  you  in  some  office— see 
if  wre  don't,"  said  friend  M. ;  and  then  he  called  the  room  to 
order.  Come  to  think  of  it,  it  wasn't  any  room  either,  for  it 
wTas  out  among  the  apple-trees,  near  the  pail  bee-hives.  After 
Tom  wras  given  a  sheet  of  paper,  and  the  preliminaries  were 
arranged,  Dr.  Snyder  was  called  upon  to  take  up  the  opening 
topic,  "  Monarda  punctata.'''' 

At  this  point  Jim  whispered  to  the  schoolma'am.  "  Horse 
meat ; "  but  the  president  shook  his  finger  at  him  in  a  threat- 
ening way.  and  he  at  once  moved  away  from  the  schoolma'am, 
and  sat  upright  and  drew  his  face  down  in  a  very  solemn  and 
sedate  manner.  Freddie  had  provided  the  doctor  with  a  sprig 
of  the  plant ;  and  as  he  rose  he  bowed,  first  to  the  president, 
then  to  the  audience. 

"  Mr.  President,  ladies,  and  gentlemen.  I  am  asked  to  tell 
you  what  I  can  about  this  plant,  Monarda  punctata.  It  is  one 
of  the  mint  family.  I  need  hardly  tell  you,  for  its  common 
name  is  horsemint."  Here  Jim  made  his  mouth  go  as  if  he 
were  saying  "  meat,''  although  no  sound  came  from  his  lips, 
at  wiiich  movement  the  president,  with  a  knowing  look,  began 
jotting  down  something  on  a  piece  of  paper.  The  doctor 
resumed,  "All  mints  have  square  stalks,  and  you  will  notice, 
first,  that  the  stalk  of  this  plant  is  square.'' 


198  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

Just  here  the  schoolma'am  begged  to  ask  of  the  gentleman 
who  had  the  floor,  whether  it  were  also  true  that  all  plants 
with  square  stalks  are  necessarily  mints. 

"  The)'  are  not,  madam.  Scrofularia  nodosa — "  Here  Fred- 
die put  in  a  great  big  whisper,  ''Simpson  plant;"  but  the 
president  rapped  on  the  table,  and  declared  the  doctor  had  the 
floor,  and  that  he  would  be  pleased  to  have  master  Freddie 
stand  up  and  enlighten  them  after  the  doctor  had  got  through. 

"Well,  as  I  was  saying,"  resumed  the  doctor,  a  Scrofularia 
nodosa,  and  many  other  plants,  have  square  stalks,  but  are  not 
mints.  The  mints  are  known  by  their  square  stalks,  and  also 
by  the  great  quantity  of  essential  oils  that  most  of  them  con- 
tain. I  believe  they  are  all  good  honey-plants.  The  one  I 
hold  here  in  my  hand  is  called  Monarda,  from  the  name  of 
the  great  Spanish  botanist  who  first  called  attention  to  it,  and 
punctata,  because  the  flowerets  are  dotted  thickly  with  round 
black  spots  so  as  to  give  it  a  look  almost  as  if  it  were  punc- 
tured with  a  great  many  pinholes."  Here  the  doctor  passed 
bits  of  the  plants  around  among  the  audience,  that  each  one 
might  see  the  dotted  or  punctured  appearance.  I  think  we 
will  take  a  look  too,  boys  and  girls,  and  so  here  I  give  you  a 
picture  of  the  renowned 


HORSEMINT  OF  TEXAS. 

Just  at  this~stage  of  proceedings  Bob  came  rushing  on  the 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  199 

scene,  with  a  branch  of  a  tree  in  his  hand,  that  had  something 
attached  to  it  along  the  stems  of  the  branches,  looking  like 
wool,  only  the  wool  seemed  alive,  as  it  waved  in  a  strange 
way  backward  and  forward.  The  leaves  of  this  branch  had 
also  some  sticky  substance  on  them,  and  as  Bob  waved  it  over 
his  head  and  shouted.  "  Here's  your  honey-dew,*'  the  conven- 
tion showed  signs  of  wanting  to  break  up.  The  president, 
however,  made  them  come  to  order  and  adjourn  in  a  regular 
way,  deciding  to  call  another  meeting  in  two  weeks,  and  then 
all  hands  noticed,  for  the  first  time,  that  the  bees  from  the 
apiary  were  going  in  a  steady  stream  toward  a  certain  piece 
of  woods.  Others  were  coming  in  laden,  and  falling  around 
the  entrance,  very  much  as  they  do  at  daylight  during  the 
height  of  a  heavy  basswOod  flow. 

"•'"Well,  you  just  better  believe  they  are  getting  honey,''  said 
Bob ;  "  why,  every  tree  in  the  woods,  almost,  is  roaring  like  a 
Dee-tree.  Look  at  it  on  these  leaves,  and  see  what  I  have  got 
in  my  hat." 

Suiting  the  actions  to  the  words,  Bob  took  off  his  hat,  but 
•didn't  find  any  honey  in  it. 

"Here  it  is,"  said  Jim;  and  he  picked  a  couple  of  large 
beech  leaves  out  of  his  hair ;  but  the  honey  had  run  out  from 
between  them,  and  stuck  his  uncombed  hair  together  until 
they  all  laughed. 

"  Sweet,  a 'n't  ye,  Bob  ?  "  said  Jim. 

"  Now,  you  just  look  here ;  next  time  I  find  any  thing  you 
want  to  see,  I  will  just  let  you  find  it  out  yourself,  see  if  I 
•don't.''  But  the  schoolma'am  assured  him  he  had  given  them 
some  valuable  facts,  and  that  a  vote  of  thanks  was  due  him. 
This  they  gave  him,  and  then  all  hands,  after  having  exam- 
ined the  honey,  voted  to  go  to  the  woods  and  see  it ;  and  the 
■doctor  promised  to  read  them  something  from  a  book,  in 
regard  to  the  strange  insects  that  look  like  wool,  and  make 
honey. 


200  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

Oh,  yes !  I  think  I  must  tell  you  just  one  thing  more.  Just 
as  they  got  over  the  fence  to  go  into  the  woods,  and  the  older- 
ones  caught  up,  they  heard  the  children  teasing  Jim  to  tell 
something  over  again. 

"Yes,  do,  Jim,  please.  O  father  !  you  just  ought  to  hear 
what  Jim  says  a  man  said  wrhen  he  drove  up  to  a  tavern,  and 
wanted  the  boy  to  take  care  of  his  horse.  Do,  Jim,  just  tell 
it  once  more.'1    It  was  Freddie  who  was  the  speaker. 

"  Let  us  hear  what  the  man  said  to  the  boy,  Jim,  if  it  isn't 
any  thing  bad." 

"Nothing  bad  at  all,  sir,"  said  Jim  with  a  slightly  sober 
look,  tk  or  I  wouldn't  be  telling  it.  It  was  only  this  :  ;  Boy  ! 
extricate  this  quadruped  from  the  vehicle;  stabulate  him,  and 
donate  him  an  adequate  supply  of  nutritious  aliment;  and 
when  the  great  aurora  of  morn  shall  again  illuminate  the  ori- 
ental horizon,  I  will  award  you  a  pecuniary  compensation  for 
your  amiable  hospitality.'  " 

"  Did  the  boy  understand  ?  " 

"I  believe,"  said  Jim,  "that  he  went  into  the  house  and 
told  the  landlord  there  was  a  Dutchman  out  there." 

John  jumped  and  swung  his  hat,  and  gave  three  cheers  for 
honey  in  October,  and  all  the  rest  joined  in,  and  now  they  are 
gone.    Good-by,  little  friends. 


MEKKYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  201 

CHAPTER  XXXVI. 

Whatsoever  thy  hand  fiudeth  to  do,  do  it  with  thy  might.— Eccl.  9:10. 

SURE  enough,  the  aphides  were  found  by  the  millions,  and 
they  were  on  the  beech-trees,  and  on  them  only.  Where 
they  appeared,  the  limbs  of  the  trees  were  white  with 
the  downy  wool,  and  the  foliage  underneath  them  was  covered 
with  the  sticky  substance,  as  well  as  the  ground  underneath, 
where  it  had  mildewed  and  turned  black,  giving  the  dead 
leaves  a  sort  of  dismal  appearance  of  the  blackness  of  death 
and  decay,  rather  than  of  bright  visions  of  honey  or  nectar. 

u  Why,  they  are  horrid  nasty  creatures,"  said  Mary,  "and 
they  spoil  the  trees  and  every  thing  near  them.'" 

"  Wait  a  bit,*'  said  the  doctor,  "  and  don't  be  in  a  hurry  to 
pass  judgment.*' 

It  was  observed,  that  as  long  as  the  limb  of  the  tree  was 
untouched,  and  the  tree  undisturbed,  the  insects  fed  quietly. 
and  no  waving  movement  was  noticed,  as  shown  by  those  Bob 
brought  on  the  limb.  At  any  slight  jar,  however  (they  were 
almost  as  sensitive  as  bees  to  any  disturbance  .  they  all  began 
to  elevate  their  bodies,  and  wave  their  "  plumes.""  The  doctor 
cut  off  a  branch,  and  they  all  sat  down  in  a  sunny  spot  where 
they  could  see  clearly,  and  began  to  study  aphides. 

"  Why,  they  are  just  nasty-looking  worms  down  under  their 
feathers,"  again  commenced  Mary;  but  the  doctor  observed 
again  — 

"Mary,  did  you  never  call  young  bees  •  nasty-looking  worms,' 
or  hear  of  anybody  else  so  doing  ?  " 

"Oh!"  said  John,  "don't  you  remember.  Tom,  the  man 
who  came  to  see  about  his  bees,  who  said  the  combs  were  so 
full  of  worms  that  were  scattered  over  it,  just  like  beads  V  " 


202  MERRVBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

"Yes,"  said  Tom,  "  and  we  could  hardly  make  him  believe 
they  were  young  bees,  and  would  build  up  his  colony  instead 
of  ruining  it." 

"Why,  I  think  young  bees  are  pretty,"  said  Mary,  and 
Freddie  said  the  same. 

"Well,  now,  you  see  it  all  depends  upon  our  acquaintance 
with  these  little  creatures,"  said  the  doctor.  "  If  we  knew  as 
much  about  these,  and  were  just  as  used  to  them  as  we  are  to 
young  bees,  we  might  find  them  pretty  instead  of  repulsive." 

As  they  pushed  open  the  cluster,  great  numbers  of  little 
worms,  or  larvae,  were  seen,  of  all  sizes,  and  they  also  saw  on 
the  older  insects  little  drops  of  honey  oozing  from  a  pair  of 
little  tubes;  and  while  they  looked,  a  bee  hovered  near  and 
finally  settled  and  sucked  up  the  nectar,  with  as  little  hesita- 
tion as  he  would  have  made  in  taking  it  from  a  clover-head. 

"Well,  I  can't  help  it,"  said  Mary,  "but  it  does  look 
repulsive.    I  don't  want  any  of  that  honey,  I  am  sure." 

"I  beg  your  pardon,  Mary,"  said  friend  Merrybanks,  "but 
do  you  think  it  repulsive  to  see  cows  milked  ?  and  when  you 
see  it  done,  do  you  feel  like  saying  you  don't  want  any  of  the 
milk  V  " 

"  Oh !  there  is  one  with  wings.  It  is  a  queen,  it  is  a  queen," 
said  Freddie;  but  Jim  just  here  came  up  with  a  bush  which 
he  held  before  them,  saying,— 

"  What  do  you  think  of  that,  Master  Freddie  V  Don't  you 
see,  mine  are  almost  all  queens  ?"  All  looked,  and,  sure 
enough,  some  of  them  had  wings  not  very  much  unlike 
winged  ants,  but  none  present  could  explain  it. 

"  Who  is  going  to  be  our  entomologist,  and  explain  these 
things  to  us  V  "  said  the  doctor.  "  If  we  can't  do  any  better, 
we  can  take  them  down  to  my  office,  and  I  will  find  a  book 
that  will  explain  it  a  little,  I  am  pretty  sure." 

All  hands  agreed ;  and  as  it  was  not  a  great  way  off,  they 
started.     As  they  came  into  the  little  town,  carrying  the 


MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  20$ 

brandies,  everybody  knew,  of  course,  that  something  was  upr 
and  so  they  followed  along,  looking  at  the  queer  insects, 
until  the  doctor  had  the  greater  part  of  Onionville  for  his 
audience.  As  they  passed  the  parsonage  on  the  way,  the 
minister  was  asked  to  join  in  with  them,  and  he,  too,  brought 
along  a  cyclopedia,  to  help  add  to  the  fund  of  knowledge 
about  aphides.  The  doctor  found  his  book,  and  all  sat  down 
on  the  porch  to  listen.    He  began,  and  read  as  follows  : — 

"Aphidce,  Leach,  or  Aphis  family.— This  family  comprises  Eemiptera 
homovtera—' 

At  this  point  Jim  was  heard  to  repeat,  in  a  very  loud 
whisper,  "Hemiptera  hornoptera,"  with  a  knowing  look  at 
Freddie  at  the  same  time.  The  doctor  paused  and  good- 
naturedly  remarked,— 

"  Jim,  it  seems  to  me  we  have  a  promise  of  having  an  ety- 
mologist among  us  soon,  if  we  don't  have  an  entomologist; 
and  if  Freddie  should  get  into  a  tight  place  in  his  hard  names, 
you  can  take  hold  and  help  him  out."' 

••May  I  here  suggest,"  said  John's  father,  "  that  our  pastor 
give  us  the  meaning  of  the  words  he  has  just  used,  as  well  as 
the  ones  he  read  out  of  that  book  V  There  are  children  here, 
besides  some  older  ones  like  myself,  who  would  like  to  have 
things  made  very  plain." 

You  see.  our  friends  had  not  quite  gotten  over  the  atmos- 
phere of  the  convention  of  an  hour  before,  even  if  it  had 
been  adjourned  ;  and  as  all  asked  to  have  the  hard  words  ex- 
plained, the  minister  arose  smilingly,  and  spoke  as  follows  : 

••  You  will  excuse  me  for  being  brief,  I  know,  friends,  for 
we  are  most  of  us  in  a  hurry  to  know  about  the  insects  that 
are  now  expressing  their  displeasure  by  waving  to  and  fro  on 
the  branches.  Etymology  treats  of  the  history  of  words  and 
grammatical  forms,  while  entomology  treats  of  insects,  their 
shape,  habits,  etc.  This  latter  branch  of  science,  howeverr 
borders  closely  on  several  others,  as  zoology,  for  instance ;  and 


204  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

if  I  mistake  not,  it  is  a  book  on  zoology  the  doctor  is  reading 
from." 

"  Tenney's  Manual  of  Zoology,"  replied  the  doctor. 

"  Thanks.  Well,  now  for  the  words  hemiptera  fiomoptera. 
These  words  refer  to  those  insects  in  which  the  wing-covers 
are  of  one  texture  throughout,  and  do  not  overlap  when  shut; 
as,  for  instance,  the  harvest-flies  and  these  plant-lice.  It  will 
be  wrell  to  remember,  that  ptera,  or  pteron,  is  the  Greek  for  a 
wing  or  feather.  Moreover,  the  word  aphides  is  pronounced  in 
three  syllables,  as  if  spelled  af-i-deez,  just  as  the  doctor  showed 
you  a  while  ago.  And  now  if  he  will  be  so  kind  as  to  com- 
mence again,  we  shall  have  a  better  understanding,  perhaps, 
of  what  we  are  going  to  hear." 

At  this  the  doctor  commenced  again,  and  read : 

Aphidce— Leach,  or  Aphis  family.— This  family  comprises  hemiptera  ho- 
moptera,  which  have  the  body  short,  and  furnished  at  the  hind  extremity 
with  two  little  tubes,  or  pores,  from  which  exude  minute  drops  of  a  very 
sweet  fluid.  Their  upper  wings  are  much  longer  than  the  body,  about 
twice  as  large  as  the  lower  ones,  nearly  triangular,  and,  when  atjrest,  al- 
most vertical.  Aphides,  or  plant-lice,  inhabit  all  kinds  of  plants,  the 
leaves  and  softer  portions  being  often  completely  covered  with  them. 
The  young  are  hatched  in  the  spring,  and  soon  come  to  maturity;  and, 
what  is  remarkable,  the  whole  brood  consists  of  wingless  females;  and, 
what  is  still  more  remarkable,  these  females  bring  forth  living  young, 
each  female  producing  fifteen  or  twenty  in  a  day.  These  young  are  also 
wingless  females,  and  at  maturity  bring  forth  living  young,  which  are 
also  all  wingless  females,  and  in  their  turn  bring  forth  living  young;  and 
in  this  way  brood  after  brcod  is  produced,  even  to  the  fourteenth  gener- 
ation, in  a  single  season,  and  this  without  the  appearance  of  a  single 
male.  But  the  last  brood  in  autumn  contains  both  males  and  females, 
which  at  length  have  wings,  pair,  stock  the  plants  with  eggs,  and  then 
perish.  Reaumur  has  proven  that  a  single  aphis  in  five  generations 
may  become  the  progenitor  of  about  six  thousand  millions  of  descend- 
ants. Wherever  plant-lice  abound,  ants  collect  to  feed  upon  the  honey- 
like fluid  produced  by  them;  and  the  most  friendly  relations  exist  be- 
tween these  two  kinds  of  insects.  The  ants  even  caress  the  plant-lice 
with  their  antenna?,  apparently  soliciting  them  to  give  out  the  sweet 
fluid,  and  the  plant-lice  yield  to  their  solicitation;  and  a  single  aphis  has 


MERRYJBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  205 

been  known  to  give  in  succession  a  drop  to  each  of  a  number  of  ants 
waiting  to  receive  it!  In  return,  the  ants  take  the  kindest  care  of  the 
plant-lice,  warding  off  or  removing  anything  that  may  be  injurious  to 
them.  Plant-lice  are  kept  in  check  by  beetles  called  lady-bugs.  The  ge- 
nus Eriosma  contains  downy  plant-lice,  or  those  which  have  a  sort  of 
Avoolly  or  cottony  covering. 

After  he  had  finished,  the  children  wanted  the  book  ;  and  as 
they  read,  they  examined  the  insects  and  took  down  the 
points,  statement  by  statement,  and  verified  them  with  their 
own  eyes. 

"  How  wonderful  are  thy  works,  O  Lord  !  in  wisdom  hast 
thou  made  them  all." 

It  was  the  minister  who  repeated  the  text,  for  he  was  bend- 
ing over  them  and  listening  to  their  talk. 

By  request,  the  minister  now  read  as  follows  from  the  Libra- 
ry °f  Universal  Knowledge  : 

Aphis— a  genus  of  insects  belonging  to  the  order  hemiptera,  sub-order 
homoptera  —  the  type  of  a  family  called  aphidii.  They  are  small  insects, 
living  by  sucking  the  juices  of  plants,  upon  which  they  may  be 
seen  congregated  in  immense  numbers, often  doing  serious  injury,  caus- 
ing the  distortion  of  leaves,  and  even  the  blight  and  decay  of  the  plant. 
The  woolly  aphis,  or  American  blight  (A.  lanicjera;  eriosma  mali  of  Leach), 
is  sometimes  very  injurious  to  apple-trees;  and  when  once  it  has  found 
its  way  into  a  garden  or  orchard  it  is  very  difficult  of  removal.  It  is  a 
minute  insect,  "covered  with  a  long  cotton-like  wool,  transpiring  from 
the  pores  of  its  body"  —  "  a  cottony  excretion"  —  in  which  it  differs  from 
the  ordinary  aphides,  and  takes  its  place  in  the  chinks  and  rugosities  of 
the  hark,  multiplying  rapidly,  extracting  the  sap,  causing  diseased  ex- 
crescences, and,  ultimately,  the  destruction  of  the  tree.  It  was  first  ob- 
served in  England  in  1767;  but  it  is  uncertain  if  it  was.  as  has  been  sup- 
posed, accidentally  brought  from  America.  The  hop-fly  (A.  humuli)  and 
the  aphis  of  the  turnip  and  cabbage  [A.  brassicce),  have  sometimes  caused 
the  destruction  of  entire  crops.  The  price  of  hops  varies  from  one  year 
to  another,  very  much  according  to  the  numbers  in  which  "the  fly"  has 
appeared.  The  potato  aphis  (A.  vastator)  has  been  represented  as  the 
cause  of  the  potato  disease;  but  this  opinion  has  few  supporters.  Tbe 
aphides  of  the  rose  (.4.  rosce)  and  of  the  bean  (A.fabce)  are  among  the 
most  familiarly  known.  Every  one  must  have  observed  the  leaves  of 
trees  and  shrubs  deformed  by  red  convexities.    In  the  hollows  of  the  un- 


306  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

der  side  of  these,  aphides  have  their  habitation,  and  there  they  find  their 
food.  The  exhausted  leaf  at  last  curls  up.  Most  of  the  species  are 
green;  but  the  aphis  of  the  bean  is  black.  They  are  generally  called 
plant-lice.  They  have  a  proboscis  (haustellum)  by  which  they  pierce  and 
suck  plants;  and  at  the  extremity  of  the  abdomen,  two  horn-like  pro- 
cesses, from  which  exude  frequent  small  drops  of  a  saccharine  fluid 
called  "  honey-dew,"  a  favorite  food  of  ants.  It  has  been  seen  even  to 
fall  in  a  kind  of  shower  from  trees  much  covered  with  aphides.  The 
legs  of  aphides  are  long,  and  they  move  slowly  and  awkwardly  by  them. 
The  greater  number  of  them  never  have  wings.  It  is  in  the  autumn  that 
perfect-winged  insects  generally  appear.  From  the  pairing  of  these  re- 
sult eggs,  which  produce  female  aphides  in  the  following  spring,  and 
successive  generations  of  wingless  aphides  are  produced  in  a  viviparous 
manner  without  impregnation  throughout  the  summer,  after  which 
winged  aphides  again  appear.  Their  increase  is  restrained,  not  only  by 
birds,  hut  by  insects  which  feed  on  them.  A  family  of  coleopterous  in- 
sects, to  which  the  genus  coccinella,  or  lady-birds,  belongs,  has  received, 
on  this  account,  the  name  of  aphidiphagi,  or  aphis-eaters.  There  are 
also  certain  minute  hymenopterous  insects,  which  destroy  them  in  great 
numbers  by  depositing  their  eggs  in  them.  The  larva  feeds  upon  the  liv- 
ing aphis,  out  of  which  it  at  last  eats  its  way,  leaving  a  mere  desiccated 
skin. 

At  its  conclusion  friend  Merrybanks  remarked,  "  We  are  all 
very  much  obliged  indeed  lor  this  additional  information,  es- 
pecially in  regard  to  the  damage  the  aphides  do  to  the  trees. 
Why,  I  had  been  already  planning  how  we  might  select  the 
most  promis'ng  variety,  and  keep  them  as  an  adjunct  to  the 
aj)iary,  and,  may  be,  develop  a  superior  strain,  just  as  they  do 
Jersey  cows  and  the  like,  and  I  declare  I  have  half  a  mind  to 
go  into  it  yet.1' 

l*  Oh,  don't  I'1  said  Mary;  "don't  you  remember  the  book 
says  they  carry  blight  and  death  wherever  they  go  V  I  am 
sure  every  thing  looked  blighted  where  we  found  them.  Even 
the  mmss  and  leaves  O'l  th  •  ground  looked  blue  and  dismal  and 
—  iKizti/!  mikI  tha*  i^  just  whit  they  are— so,  there  !  " 

Here  the  <l"(*to  ad  h'd  tha'  he  was  inclined  to  agree  with 
M     y   thai  the  insp  ts  seemed  to  carry  rather  too  much  devas- 


merry  banks  andhis  neighijok.  tsn 

tation  and  death  with  them  to  promise  much;  but  still,  as  peo- 
ple often  get  prejudices  that  time  shows  to  have  been  un- 
founded, it  might  be  well  to  avoid  deciding  hastily. 

"  But  you  know  the  book  said  they  kill  apple-trees,  and  that 
would  spoil  the  cider,"  said  Jim;  but  friend  M.  said  that 
would  be  no  loss. 

John  sided  with  friend  M.,  as  he  usually  did,  and  they  two 
started  off  to  find  more  cyclopedias,  and  began  considering 
how  they  could  so  protect  the  "  woolly  aphis  "  that  they  might 
go  on  with  their  researches. 

"  If  we  only  knew  as  much  about  them  as  we  do  about  our 
bees,"  said  John, kt  wouldn't  it  be  easy  going  ahead  ?  " 

•w  If  we  only  knew  as  much  about  all  kinds  of  insect  and 
vegetable  life  as  we  do  about  bees,  we  should  be  a  deal  wiser 
than  we  are  now,"  interposed  Tom. 

"  Oh  !  that  reminds  me,"  said  Mr.  M.,  "  that  there  is  a  man 
up  near  Berryville  who  has  for  many  years  been  studying 
plums  — " 

"  Plums  !  "  interposed  Freddie,  "  I  shouldn't  think  there  is 
much  to  study  about  plums." 

"  Well,  if  you  will  go  with  me  some  time  and  see  him,  I  think 
you  will  find  there  are  a  few  things,"  said  his  father.  "  He 
has  a  large  orchard,  all  plum-trees,  and  I  forget  how  many 
kinds  there  are,  but  there  are  a  dozen  or  twenty.  The  trees 
are  so  smooth  and  glossy,  and  so  symmetrical  and  thrifty,  you 
would  hardly  think  of  calling  them  plum-trees.  He  not  only 
studies  the  tops,  leaves,  and  blossoms,  but  he  gets  down  and 
digs  all  about  the  roots  ;  and  woe  betide  the  worm  that  thinks 
he  can  get  into  one  of  the  trees  and  not  be  found  out.  He  has 
a  sort  of  wheelbarrow  that  he  bumps  the  trees  with,  and 
catches  the  curculio ;  and  the  fruit  is  so  large  and  fair  that 
a  little  girl  who  was  there  called  them  '  red  peaches.'  When 
I  saw  them,  many  of  the  trees  were  bending  with  fruit;  and 


208  MERRYBANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

how  much  do  you  guess  he  was  offered  for  them  in  the  city, 
not  long  ago?" 

There  was  a  deal  of  guessing,  but  none  came  high  enough. 

"  He  was  offered  seven  dollars  a  bushel  for  the  best  of  them, 
to  put  in  little  baskets  of  assortments  of  fancy  fruit." 

"  I  am  glad  to  hear  it,"  said  the  doctor,  "  for  I  think  it  no 
more  than  right  that  those  who  give  their  whole  attention  to 
developing  any  branch  of  rural  industry  should  be  rewarded, 
and  well  rewarded." 

That  night  John  was  a  little  inclined  to  have  the  plum  fe- 
ver, as  he  questioned  friend  M.  further  ;  but  his  mother  bade 
him  do  a  few  things,  and  do  them  well,  rather  than  to  attempt 
too  many  things. 


MKKKYRANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR.  209 

CHAPTER  XXXVII. 

Sanctity  them  through  thy  truth;  thy  word  is  truth.— John  17: 17. 
CONCLUSION. 

DEAR  friends.  I  have  finished  my  book.  I  presume  that 
even  the  children,  most  of  them,  know  that  Merry- 
banks  is  a  fictitious  character;  or,  in  other  words, 
that  there  never  was  any  such  person.  I  presume  these 
children  know,  too,  that  many  of  their  books,  even  their 
Sunday-school  books,  contain  "  made-up"  stories,  as  they 
are  sometimes  called.  The  things  contained  in  them  are 
true,  but  the  names  of  the  people,  and  the  incidents,  or 
things  that  happened,  are,  most  of  them,  put  together  so 
as  to  form  a  book  or  story.  Many  of  the  best  books  we 
have  are  of  this  class,  although  there  are  different  opin- 
ions in  regard  to  them. 

Most  of  the  things  stated  in  Merrybanks  were  true  in 
substance,  and  so  many  of  you  could  hardly  tell  what  I 
meant  to  be  actual  facts  and  what  were  not.  For  instance, 
one  friend  wondered  that  all  my  characters  in  that  story  im- 
proved and  got  good  so  fast.  Well,  friends,  I  did  think, 
sometimes,  that,  to  have  my  story  look  life-like,  there 
ought  to  be  more  bad  in  it ;  but  to  tell  the  truth,  I  could 
not  bear  to  make  John  and  Mary,  and  Tom  the  doctor's 
boy,  and  the  rest  of  them,  do  bad  things.  Since  writing  so 
long  about  them,  I  have  almost  learned  to  love  them  as  if 
they  were  a  reality ;  and  if  I  have  got  to  tell  bad  things 
about  them  to  make  my  story  real  and  life-like,  I  shall 
not  tell  any  thing  about  them  at  all.  Good-bye,  John, 
Mary,  Bob,  Freddie,  and  Jim.  Good-bye,  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Jones,  the   doctor,  and  dear   old    friend  Merrybanks,  who 


210  MERRYLANKS  AND  HIS  NEIGHBOR. 

had  so  much  trouble  at  first,  but  who  has  turned  out  so 
good  and  strong  at  last.  If  I  made  you  all  better  in  my 
little  story,  God  knows  it  was  because  I  did  truly  "hun- 
ger and  thirst  after  righteousness,"  and  I  know  he  will 
help  me  to  find  something  good  out  of  all  the  real  life  he  will 
give  me  before  I  die. 

Should  any  of  the  friends  desire  to  follow  the  subject  of  bee 
culture  further,  and  go  more  into  the  minutiae  than  it  has 
been  given  here,  we  would  refer  them  to  the  A  B  C  of  Bee 
Culture  ;  if  they  care  to  go  into  the  matter  of  gardening  and 
rural  industries,  we  would  direct  them  to  the  A  B  C  of  Pota- 
to Culture,  by  T.  B.  Terry,  and  the  new  book  now  in  press, 
entitled,  What  to  Do,  and  How  to  Be  Happy  While  Doing  It. 
If  they  feel  interested  more  in  the  subject  of  domesticating 
fish,  and  raising  them  for  food,  we  refer  them  to  the  book 
above  mentioned,  and  also  to  the  A  B  C  of  Carp  Culture.  If 
it  happens  that  you  feel  already  acquainted  with  the  author  of 
this  little  book,  and  therefore  particularly  prefer  his  own 
writings,  you  are  referred  to  Gleanings  in  Bee  Culture 
and  Home  Interests,  a  semi-monthly  periodical  from  which 
this  little  work  was  taken.  The  only  complete  books  he  has 
written  are  the  A  B  C  of  Bee  Culture,  and  What  to  Do  and 
How  to  Be  Happy  While  Doing  It.  This  latter  work  touches 
on  almost  all  departments  of  rural  industries  —  bees,  poultry, 
carp,  gardening,  and  fruit  culture,  but  more  especially  the 
two  latter.  A.  I.  Root. 

Medina,  O.,  Sept.  21, 1887. 


THE  ABC  OF  CARP  CULTURE. 

Second  Edition,  Revised  and  Entirely  Re- written. 

A     COMPLETE     TREATISE 

IN  REGARD  TO  THE  GERMAN  FOOD  GARP. 

Including  I'lans    and    Specifications,  and    Fullest  Instruc- 
tions for  the  Construction  of  Ponds,  and  Every    Tiling 
Pertaining  to  the  Business  of  Poising  Carp  for  Food. 

IliMISTRHTED  BY  MW  FINE  ENGI^YINGS. 

By  A.  I.  Root  and  George  Finley. 
Price    33    Cents;     By    Jk^ail,    -*0     Cents- 

PUBLISHED  BY  A.  I.  ROOT,  MEDINA.  O. 


*TBE  H BG  OF  POTBTfl  HOT.* 

W2ITTEN  BY  T.  B.  TEBEY,  OF  HUDSON,  OHIO. 

How  to  Grow  Them  in  tlie  Largest  Quantity,  and  of  the  Finest 

Quality,  With  tlie  Least  Expenditure  of 

Time  and  Labor. 

<  artfully   Considering  all  the    Latest    Improvement  ft   in   this  Branch 
of  Agriculture  up  to  the  Present  Date. 

ILLUSTRATED  BY  TWENTY  ENGRAVINGS. 

TABLE    OF    COXTFXTS. 

Soils  and  their  Preparation.—  Manures  and  their  Application.— When 
and  HowFarApart  Shall  we  Plant?— Shall  we  Plant  Deep  or  Shallow?— 
Shall  we  Plant  in  Hills  or  Drills?— How  to  Make  the  Drills  and  Fill  them.— 
Selection  and  Care  of  Seed.— Cutting  Seed  to  One  Eye.—  Planting  Po- 
tatoes hy  Machinery.— Harrowing  after  Planting.— Cultivating  and  Hoe- 
ing—Handling  the  Bugs  —  The  Use  of  Bushel  Boxes.— A  Top  Box  for  the 
Wagon.—  Digging. —  Storing'.—  Wbat  Varieties  Shall  we  liaise?— Potato- 
pro  wring  as  a  Specialty  —  I'.est  Rotation  where  Potatoes  are  made  a  Special 
Crop.— Cost  of  Production,  and  Profits. 

PPLICE    33     GTS.;    BY    MA.IIj,     3S     CTS. 


THE  ABC  OF  BEE  CULTURE. 

A  CYCLOPAEDIA  OF 

Everything  Pertaining  to  the  Care  of  the  Honey-Bee. 

This  is  a  cyclopaedia  of  330  pages,  and  is  beautifully  illustrated  by  nearly 
250  engravings,  many  of  them  full  page.  Some  of  the  latter  embrace  a 
view  of  the  apiaries  of  some  of  our  largest  and  most  successful  bee-men. 
The  whole  work  is  elegantly  bound  in  cloth,  7  inches  wide  by  10^4  inches 
long,  and  embossed  on  side  and  back  in  gold.  It  would  be  an  ornament 
on  the  center-table  of  any  bee-keeper's  home. 

Especial  care  is  used  to  explain  in  detail  how  Frames,  Sections,  Hives, 
Extractors,  and  other  fixtures,  are  made  and  put  together,  the  process  be- 
ing made  clear  by  the  use  of  many  eugravings.  The  comparative  value 
of  the  various  Races  of  Bees  is  fully  discussed.  Much  is  said  of  the  many 
valuable  Honey-Plants.  Considerable  space  has  been  devoted  to  the  sub- 
ject of  the  Production,  Shipping,  and  Sale  of  Comb  and  Extracted  Honey. 
The  articles  on  Wintering  contain  the  best  that  is  known  on  that  subject. 
Transferring,  Queen-Rearing,  Artificial  Swarming,  and  other  manipula- 
tions, are  treated  so  that  we  hope  our  friends  who  are  beginners  may  have 
no  trouble  in  fully  understanding  how  to  operate. 

The  whole  work  is  brimful  of  contagious  enthusiasm,  and  the  style  so 
simple  and  instructive,  that  even  the  more  advanced  bee-keeper  as  well 
as  the  beginner  may  find  pleasure  and  profit  in  its  perusal.  None  of  the 
matter  is  electrotyped,  but  all  is  kept  in  standing  type,  so  that  when  any 
new  thing  of  importance  comes  up  it  can  be  inserted  in  its  appropriate 
place.  Its  quick  sales  have  warranted  us  in  giving  it  frequent  and  thor- 
ough revisions.  The  present  edition  is  greatly  enlarged  and  improved,  so 
that  it  is  nearly  twice  the  size  of  the  one  first  issued;  and  no  bee-keeper 
having  an  original  copy  can  afford  to  be  without  this  latest  edition. 

Since  the  first  issue  in  1877  its  average  sale  has  been  over  200  copies  per 
month,  and  the  sale  has  be4en  steadily  increasing  from  the  first.  Prices: 
Neatly  and  strongly  bound  in  cloth,  by  mail,  $1.25;  by  express  or  freight 
with  other  goods,  $1.10.  In  paper  covers,  ly  mail,  $1.00;  by  express  or 
freight  with  other  goods,  88  cents. 

A.  I.  ROOT,  Medina,  Ohio. 


